Malaysian border agency detains containers with fake halal certificates and e-waste, with February recording the highest seizure value of RM18.9 million.
PORT KLANG: The Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) has taken enforcement action against 231 containers from January to March this year, involving goods with a total trade value of RM36.2 million.
Port Klang AKPS commander Datuk Nik Ezanee Mohd Faisal said the containers were detected through inspections by the Malaysian Quarantine and Inspection Services Department (MAQIS), the Ministry of Health, and the Royal Malaysian Customs Department.
He stated that February recorded the highest seizure value at RM18.9 million, compared to RM8.8 million in January and RM8.4 million in March.
The commander elaborated that cases involving MAQIS recorded the highest value at RM18.89 million, followed by health compliance breaches at RM11.24 million and customs offences at RM5.95 million.
Nik Ezanee said the increase in cases in February was believed to be due to a rise in import activities during the festive season.
“It’s still too early to draw conclusions about the upward trend considering that AKPS is a relatively new agency and lacks comparative data from previous years,” he said at a press conference.
In a separate development, the agency sent 15 containers of electronic waste out of the country this morning through a joint operation with several other authorities.
Nik Ezanee added that about 150 more prohibited waste containers are expected to be repatriated by the end of the month, bringing the total handled to around 803 containers.
The agency also dismantled a syndicate suspected of using fake halal certificates and dubious health documents to smuggle 187.8 tonnes of frozen chicken and duck into Malaysia.
This seizure involved seven containers inspected on April 9 based on public information and intelligence, with a trade value reaching RM1.06 million.
“Initial checks found that the submitted documents were inconsistent, including the use of a company name that is suspected of not existing and discrepancies in the shipping information,” he said.
He explained that further inspections found mismatched import documents and that the accompanying halal certificate and health documents were suspected to be fake.
All containers from this case were detained and handed over to MAQIS for investigation and further action.
In another separate case, the team detained a container holding 25 tonnes of frozen pork from Australia worth RM204,000, which was also handed over to MAQIS.
