Foreign national sisters held at klia2 in bid to smuggle meths into Malaysia

SEPANG: Two Indian national sisters might have thought bringing talcum powder bottles into Malaysia was a surefire ‘cosmetic exercise’ to smuggle the drug, methamphetamine, without being detected by the authorities.

Young and attractive, the women suspected to be drug mules, attempted to sweet-talk customs officers on Jan 4, upon arrival at the klia2 via AirAsia flight about 7.30am, into allowing them to bring in the beauty product without checks.

The customs officers however, smelled a rat over the suspicious behaviour of the siblings from Chennai, Tamil Nadu and demanded the women open their two bags.

Customs director- general Datuk Seri T Subromaniam said upon checking the contents of the bottles, the customs officers seized 10.5kg of methamphetamine worth RM735,000.

The sisters aged 30 and 31 were detained to facilitate investigations, he told a press conference at the Customs Department in the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

In another case on Jan 11, Subromaniam said checks on two boxes containing several portable gas stoves which arrived at the KLIA from Tiruchirappalli, South India via a Malindo Air flight led to the seizure of 5.2kg of methamphetamine worth RM364,000.

He said a 32-year- old male Indian national was detained about 6.10pm when the drug was found hidden in the gas stoves.

He said both cases were investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act which carries the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.

Commenting on the success of the two drug busts, he said it was due to efficient evaluation by the risk management team to single out passengers carrying drugs.

He said the customs department had also held discussions with the Indian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur following a number of cases involving Indian nationals caught bringing drugs to Malaysia. — Bernama