ALOR SETAR: Kedah police busted a syabu (methamphetamine) trafficking syndicate with the arrest of nine men in three separate operations in Kuala Nerang on Thursday and Saturday last week.
Kedah police chief Datuk Fisol Salleh said, in the three arrests, his party succeeded in seizing more than 20 kilogrammes (kg) of syabu and 130 kg of ketum leaves estimated to be worth more than RM730,000.
“The first arrest was made on Thursday at 10.30 pm was a 52-year-old man in front of a house in Kampung Lamdin, Naka and police seized a backpack with several plastic packages containing syabu weighing more than 18kg.
“The police later raided a house in the same village at 11 pm and arrested six men, including a Thai national aged 26 to 39,“ he said at a press conference at the Kedah contingent police headquarters here today.
He said, as a result of the inspection in the store room at the side of the house, they found a transparent plastic packet containing syabu estimated to weigh 22.90 grammes along with tools to smoke the drug.
“Further inspection at the back of the house yielded 18 black plastic packages containing ketum leaves estimated to weigh 130 kg.
“In the third arrest on Saturday at 6 am, the police arrested two men aged 25 and 34 near a petrol station in Kampung Padang Kerasak (Kuala Nerang). Two suspects attempted to escape after realising the presence of the police were however successfully arrested,“ he said.
Fisol said that an examination of a bag thrown away by the suspect, police found a transparent plastic package containing pieces of syabu crystal and a transparent plastic package containing syabu estimated to weigh more than two kilogrammes.
“Eight of the suspects tested positive for drugs and some of them have criminal records. All those arrested were remanded for seven days and the case was investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952,“ he said.
In other developments, Fisol said 34 accident hotspots have been identified throughout Kedah in conjunction with Aidilfitri and more than 200 police officers and personnel will be on duty throughout Op Selamat to ensure that traffic on all the state’s main routes runs smoothly.
