BUTTERWORTH: Penang Royal Malaysian Customs Department and the Department of Environment successfully intercepted an attempt to smuggle 40.25 tonnes of municipal solid waste through the North Butterworth Container Terminal.
The interception occurred on August 23 when authorities discovered two containers filled with prohibited waste materials including plastic, rubber, wood, stones, and various metals.
State Customs director Datuk Rohaizad Ali confirmed that the shipment originated from Savannah, USA, and was imported by a local company that had falsely declared the contents as aluminium flakes.
“This false declaration was an attempt to bypass the requirement for an Approved Permit, which is mandatory for such controlled materials,“ he stated during a press conference at the state Customs Prevention Complex in Perai.
The inspection, witnessed by a company representative, revealed that the containers actually held municipal waste subject to special controls and requiring technical approval from relevant authorities.
Following the discovery, customs officials detained two local men in their 40s and 50s for investigation under Section 135(1)(a) and Section 133(1)(a) of the Customs Act 1967.
Rohaizad also revealed that Penang Customs had seized commodities worth 75.227 million ringgit including duties across 214 cases from January 1 to August 31, 2025.
Cigarettes accounted for the highest value of seizures at 11.51 million ringgit with additional duties of 26.485 million ringgit from 80 separate cases.
Additional seizures included drugs worth 90.8 million ringgit in four cases, currency valued at 204,000 ringgit in two cases, and other goods totaling 24.47 million ringgit including customs duties in 23 cases. – Bernama
