Malaysian police bust syndicate that used fire extinguishers to smuggle drugs into S'pore
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The syndicate had transported the drugs, packed into modified fire extinguishers and destined for Singapore, via refrigerated lorries.
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JOHOR BARU - Malaysian police have busted a drug trafficking ring that smuggled illicit drugs into Singapore by hiding them in modified fire extinguishers.
Johor police chief Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said the syndicate had transported the drugs, packed into the fire extinguishers and destined for Singapore, via refrigerated lorries.
The illicit operations of the drug trafficking ring were foiled after intelligence was shared between Singapore's Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), Malaysia's Bukit Aman Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department, and the Johor police contingent.
"The modus operandi of the syndicate is to smuggle drugs to a neighbouring country and they were believed to have been operating for about three months," Datuk Ayob Khan said in a statement.
Nine people were arrested in separate raids around Johor Baru on Monday (May 31), the Johor police chief said. Seven Malaysian men, one Malaysian woman and an Indonesian man, aged between 26 and 40, were being held.
A CNB spokesman on Tuesday said: "The recent arrests in both Malaysia and Singapore are a testament to the close cooperation between the drug enforcement agencies in both countries.
"CNB will continue to work closely with Malaysia's (NCID) to share timely intelligence and secure our borders against transnational drug trafficking activities."
Investigators seized drugs with a street value of more than RM215,000 (S$67,800). The drugs included about 7kg of cannabis, 4.5kg of crystal methamphetamine, and around 3kg of heroin. Eight cars, cash and various items of jewellery were also among the items seized.
Drug trafficking in Malaysia carries a death penalty.
