GEORGE TOWN: Drug dealers tried to evade detection by bottling narcotics as soft drinks, but their ruse was uncovered by the police’s anti-drug division.
Acting on a tip-off, police stopped a sportscar driven by the ring leader and his wife in Pulau Tikus at about 10.30pm last Thursday.
Police then raided an apartment in Bukit Tengah after questioning the couple.
They found MDMA liquid drug in 131 herbal tea sachets.
The drugs were also packed in 27 bottles, disguised as soft drinks.
The drugs have a street value of RM900,000 and can supply up to 790 people.
Police also arrested five other accomplices, including two women at the apartment.
The suspects, aged between 20 and 35, have been remanded to facilitate investigations under section 39 (B) of the Dangerous Drug Act 1952.
Police also seized assets and cash worth RM462,250.
Among the items seized were luxury vehicles, four designer handbags, two branded watches and RM1,050 in cash.
The drug dealers’ activities had gone undetected for several months and they delivered the drugs personally to their customers.
They used coded messages on social media to communicate, Penang Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department chief Asst Comm Maidu Abdu Bakar told a press conference.
It is the first major drug bust this year in Penang, he said.
In another development, 183 persons were arrested for various offences under an anti-drug operation codenamed “Ops Icebreaker 2.0” on Jan 10 and 11.
