MMEA foils RM15 mln drug chemical smuggling attempt
ALOR GAJAH: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) foiled a chemical smuggling attempt and seized drug precursors worth RM15 million in Melaka on May 1.
MMEA acting deputy director-general (operations) Rear Admiral (M) Mohd Zawawi Abdullah said the seizure, which is the largest recorded this year, was also the first involving precursors smuggled out of Melaka for sale in a neighbouring country.
Investigations and intelligence gathering led to the discovery of 15 boxes wrapped in black plastic stacked on rocks along the shore of Pengkalan Balak, near the Sailing Training Centre here, he added.
'Inspections conducted at 9.40 pm found 179 one-litre bottles filled with chemicals used in processing synthetic drugs, capable of producing about 150 kilogrammes (kg) of such drugs, believed to have been sent to the location using land vehicles before being loaded onto boats.
'No arrests were made at the location as we believe the smugglers abandoned the materials after realising authorities were conducting patrols,' he said in a media conference about the seizure at the Melaka and Negeri Sembilan MMEA Office in Kuala Sungai Baru today.
Mohd Zawawi also said that preliminary tests indicated that the chemical mixtures also contained methamphetamine, ecstasy and nicotine, and that it could be used for electronic cigarettes.
'The seizure provides a clear indication that there are attempts by neighbouring countries to produce or process synthetic drugs in Malaysia, as previous seizures were of processed drugs,' he said, adding that the precursors have been sent to a laboratory for further testing.
The case is being investigated under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and the Poisons Act 1952, he added.
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