A joint operation between Singapore and Malaysia has smashed a Johor-based drug syndicate, the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) said in a statement yesterday.
About 14kg of heroin was seized and 16 people were arrested as a result of the investigations, which the CNB carried out together with the Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) of the Royal Malaysia Police.
"We have managed to dismantle a drug syndicate that was supplying a sizeable amount of drugs to Singapore, and we also prevented a large amount of drugs from flowing onto the streets of Singapore," said CNB director Ng Ser Song.
Last Tuesday, both agencies received intelligence that a consignment of drugs would be coming into Singapore.
CNB officers spotted two suspected drug traffickers - Singaporean men aged 45 and 55 - driving to the carpark at Alexandra Retail Centre later that day. Two other suspects - both Malaysian men in their 20s - arrived at the carpark on a motorbike shortly after.
All four men were arrested soon after leaving the carpark in their respective vehicles. Police found about 470g of heroin in the car's glove compartment. They also recovered $2,500 from each of the Malaysians.
Following the arrests, police searched the workplace of one of the Malaysians, a 25-year-old. They found about 2.4kg of heroin and 525g of Ice, or methamphetamine, in his locker.
In the evening, CNB officers arrested two more Singaporean men at a Choa Chu Kang supermarket. The suspects, in their 20s, were also believed to be associated with the syndicate. A small packet of Ice was recovered from one of the men.
"Both violently resisted arrest and necessary force was used to subdue them," said the CNB in its statement. "Two CNB officers sustained minor injuries in the process, and received outpatient treatment."
The next day, Malaysia's NCID launched an operation against the Johor-based drug syndicate. They arrested 10 more people and seized 11.5kg of heroin and 61g of Ice, as well as six cars.
The CNB's Mr Ng said: "The fight against drugs must be fought with close cooperation between counterparts. No drug enforcement agency can do it alone."
The CNB said investigations are ongoing.
It estimated that the amount of heroin seized in Singapore alone was enough to feed the addiction of about 1,357 drug abusers for a week, while the Ice seized could serve about 300 abusers for the same length of time.
The estimated total value of the heroin and Ice seized here is about $347,000.
Anyone found guilty of trafficking more than 15g of pure heroin or 250g of methamphetamine faces the death penalty.
