SHAH ALAM: Police have confirmed no Malaysian citizens have been arrested for fentanyl abuse following the massive seizure of the synthetic opioid last August.
Bukit Aman Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said police have also not received any reports linking Malaysians to the banned substance, dubbed the ‘zombie drug’.
He said investigations indicate the suspects involved are an international syndicate that attempted to bring fentanyl into Malaysia via containers through a Selangor port.
“No new arrests have been made in relation to the case,“ Hussein told a press conference at the Selangor Police Headquarters today.
Police believe the attempt to bring in the synthetic drug was the syndicate’s initial effort to introduce fentanyl to the local market.
Hussein described fentanyl as a dangerous synthetic drug 50 times more powerful than heroin that has caused many deaths abroad.
Police remain vigilant against attempts to bring the substance into the country.
On September 23, Hussein revealed police had busted an international drug trafficking syndicate after seizing more than 1,000 kilogrammes of fentanyl and various other drugs worth RM32.14 million.
The raids conducted on August 19 and 23 in Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Selangor resulted in the arrest of four local men and four foreigners aged between 19 and 55.
According to Hussein, fentanyl is processed into liquid and powder form before being sold in the market.
The powder is made into pills while the liquid is used to lace mixtures for electronic cigarettes or vapes. – Bernama
