GEORGE TOWN: Malaysian police and their Indonesian counterpart busted an international drug syndicate with the seizure of drugs worth a whopping RM2.06 million.
Penang acting police chief Datuk Roslee Chik said the Bukit Aman's Special Tactical Intelligence Narcotics Group (STING) and Tindak Pidana Narkoba Polri Indonesia launched the joint operation on Nov 14.
He said the team raided several areas in Bayan Lepas and arrested two Indonesian men there.
He said a subsequent raid was carried out in Air Itam where a local man was detained. All three men are aged between 35 and 45.
"A total of 24.7kg of syabu and 8,400 ecstasy pills were seized during the one hour operation from 3pm on Tuesday. The drugs were hidden inside the cars, which were believed to be en route to Indonesia.
"We believe the drugs were brought through the sea route...not air," Roslee told a press conference at the state police contingent headquarters here today.
Apart from the drugs, police also seized cash and four vehicles, worth about RM765,000.
Roslee said the syndicate had been operating for the past two months and Penang was the transit point to transport the drugs.
"The drugs were brought in from outside sources. From here, they will bring the drugs to Indonesia.
"We are still investigating if there are others involved," he added.
He said the two Indonesian have valid travel documents while the local man arrested had previous record for drug-related offences.
The trio will be remanded for seven days to facilitate in investigation. The case is being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 for trafficking dangerous drugs.
Roslee said Bukit Aman police had crippled similar drug related cases in the past, with 22 syndicates in 40 operations for 2016 and seven syndicates in 36 operations until October this year.
Also present was Indonesian Embassy's Kuala Lumpur police attache Chaidir Zahari.