Another bigger RM3.5m Syabu bust
Published on: Thursday, May 26, 2016
Kota Kinabalu: The Customs Department made its biggest drug bust so far this year, seizing about six kilogrammes of narcotics worth about RM3.5million.Its Director Datuk Dr Janathan Kandok said the methamphetamine (Syabu), which was concealed in six packages and put in one box, was found on a 34-year old man who arrived from Kuala Lumpur on an AirAsia flight at 3.40pm on Saturday.The arrest follows another two days earlier where a local in his 20s was arrested at KKIA after one kilogramme of methamphetamine with a market value of RM500,000 was found hidden in his suitcase. The drugs were also hidden in a Chinese tea package.
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"The Chinese Malaysian had been remanded to facilitate investigations under Section 39(B) of the Dangerous Drugs Act which carries the death sentence if convicted," Janathan told a press conference, Wednesday. According to Janathan, the six packages, each weighing around one kilogramme, were wrapped in transparent plastic bags before they were put into green non-transparent plastic bags with the name Guanyinwang Chinese Tea on its exterior.The packages were then wrapped in newspapers before they were put into the medium-sized box.He explained that although the suspect arrived on a domestic flight, it was thanks to the attentiveness of the Customs officers on the ground who detected the suspect's suspicious behaviour that led to the finding and arrest.
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"Our officers thought that he looked suspicious and followed him before asking him to hand over his baggage, which also included a travel case, for scanning. The scanner managed to pick up suspicious images from inside the box," he said.Asked how the man could have avoided detection at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Janathan said since the flight was a domestic flight, it was not scanned at the departing airport.
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In fact, he said, under normal circumstances, domestic flight passengers will not be scanned upon their arrival in the KKIA as well.However, in this case, due to the suspect's suspicious behaviour and the Customs officers' quick action, the suspect's possessions were scanned. He also pointed out that the scanner used in KLIA belongs to Malaysia Airport Berhad (MAB) and not the Customs Department."In view of the increasing boldness of flight passengers attempting to smuggle drugs into the State despite the high-risk of being caught, we have a simple answer for why that is, namely, because smuggling is a business."And these criminals, whenever they thought they have the opportunity (to smuggle), they will do it. But in Sabah, don't try your luck because we are intensifying our operations at the airport."If you go to the airport now, you will notice that the security is tighter now. All passengers, it matters not whether they arrived from Tawau, Sandakan, or elsewhere, we will scan them. Nobody can escape," he said.Janathan believed Sabah is only a transit for drug smuggling activities before the drugs were sent someplace else.However, he could not ascertain exactly where the drugs would be sent to.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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