Cops bust two drug syndicates, nab five men

KUALA LUMPUR - Police have crippled two drug syndicates here following the arrest of five local men and seizure of over 17 kilogrammes (kg) of drugs believed to be heroin and ganja, estimated to be worth RM206,000.

Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Azmi Abu Kassim said all suspects, aged between 29 and 34, were arrested in separate raids in the city from Wednesday till yesterday.

He said that in the first operation, carried out in Taman Connaught, Cheras here on Wednesday, police detained four men which led to the discovery of 12.3kg of heroin, worth an estimated RM191,000, in a car at a nearby children’s playground.

"In the second raid the next day, police arrested a 30-year-old man in Jalan San Peng here at noon, and found ganja weighing one kilogramme.

"Further investigations led to the discovery of five kilogrammes of ganja in a fire extinguisher storage room in a public housing (building) on the road in question,” he said in a statement here today.

According to Azmi, three of the suspects tested positive for drugs, believed to be ganja, and all five had criminal and drug-related records.

He said both syndicates have been active for the past three months, using vehicles and the fire extinguisher storage rooms as hideouts to stash drugs to avoid detection by the authorities.

"All the (seized) drugs were obtained from suppliers around the Klang Valley and are believed to be for drug users here (Kuala Lumpur),” he said.

He said police also seized jewellery worth RM15,000 as well as RM870 in cash and a Toyota Camry, worth RM40,000, with the seizure in both raids totalling RM261,870.

He added that all the suspects have been remanded until Feb 1 and that the case is being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952. - BERNAMA