Federal Narcotics Department director Datuk Zul Hasnan Najib Baharuddin said the police's success in arresting 13 people yesterday revealed the change in tactics.

Those arrested were seven African males, a Pakistani man, a Filipino woman, a Singaporean woman, two local men and a local woman.

In a 6am operation yesterday, the Singaporean woman was arrested at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal at Sepang when the bag she was carrying was found to contain 560 grammes of heroin.

'Inspection of the bag carried by the woman, who wanted to board a flight to Hainan, China, revealed heroin hidden in a concealed compartment,' he said in a statement here today.

Mr Zul Hasnan said following her arrest police arrested a Filipino woman at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 10.20am the same day.

He said the Filipino woman, who wanted to board a flight to Karachi, Paksitan and the Singaporean woman were suspected of being used as couriers by the syndicate.

Mr Zul Hasnan said following the arrest of the two foreign women police conducted several raids in the Klang Valley and Selangor between 2pm and 5pm yesterday.

That was when the seven Nigerian men, the Pakistani man, the two local men and the local woman suspected to be members of an international drugs syndicate were arrested.

He said police also confiscated a Perodua Kancil and cash of RM2,326 (S$980), US$200 (S$296), S$16 and 400 yuan (S$86) as well as two laptop computers.

He said police as such had busted another international drugs syndicate.

'The syndicates have lately used Singaporeans and Filipinos, especially women, to smuggle drugs to countries in the region after we successfully rescued several Malaysians from being used as couriers,' he said. -- BERNAMA