DRUG SYNDICATE BUSTED WITH SEIZURE OF CANNABIS FLOWERS WORTH RM8.67 MILLION, ARREST OF EIGHT INDIVIDUALS

GEORGE TOWN, Nov 10  (Bernama) -- Police busted a drug trafficking syndicate with the seizure of RM8.67 million worth of cannabis flowers and the arrest of eight individuals, including a married couple.

Penang police chief Datuk Azizee Ismail said the seizure and arrest were made in two raids conducted in Bukit Mertajam, between 10 pm on Nov 4 and 6 pm the following day.

In the first raid, at a homestay, he said, police arrested five local men and a British man of Pakistani descent, who then led to the arrest of another local man and a Thai woman in the same area.

He said following an inspection of the homestay, the police found 17 suitcases with packages containing suspected marijuana flowers, estimated to weigh 47.7 kilogrammes.

“The syndicate is believed to have brought in the drugs by land from a neighbouring country and is believed to have used the homestay as a store and repackaging location,” he told a press conference at the Penang Police Contingent (IPK) Headquarters here today.

Azizee said the eight suspects, aged between 20 and 37, included a Malaysian and his Thai wife, who are believed to be the masterminds of the syndicate involved.

“This syndicate is believed to have been active only since the middle of last month,” he said, adding that in the raids, the police also seized two cars, a Honda Civic and a Toyota Estima, worth RM210,000.

He said all the suspects tested negative for drugs, and four of them had records for criminal and drug offences.

They are on remand for seven days until tomorrow for investigation under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act.

--BERNAMA