NIBONG TEBAL, Aug 16 — Police arrested three men, including a Sri Lankan national, and successfully dismantled a heroin processing laboratory operated by a drug distribution syndicate in two raids in the Bukit Tambun area on Tuesday.
Seberang Perai Selatan (SPS) district police chief Superintendent Jay January Siowou said that acting on information and intelligence gathered, a police team from the Penang Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department conducted a raid before arresting two local men and a Sri Lankan man, all aged between 25 and 46.
“In the first raid at 4.29pm at a house in Taman Tambun Permai, police arrested two local men along with 1,113 grammes (gm) of heroin, 641gm of heroin base, four kilogrammes of caffeine, several chemicals, and equipment suspected of being drug processing tools.
“Meanwhile, in the second raid at a house not far from the first residence, at around 5.04pm, we arrested a Sri Lankan man with 26kg of caffeine. All the drugs seized in the two raids were worth RM74,500,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He said that based on initial investigations, the first house was used as a drug processing laboratory, with one of the local suspects being the mastermind and having the expertise to process heroin.
Jay said that the other two suspects acted as assistants as well as couriers for the drugs and chemicals for the syndicate, and with these activities, they were believed to live luxuriously even though they were unemployed.
He said intelligence revealed that the syndicate had been engaging in the drug processing activities since January and that the heroin they processed was for the local market.
The two local men who were arrested possessed previous records related to drugs and crime, while the Sri Lankan man had no previous record, he said, adding that the total amount of drugs seized could be used by 49,500 addicts.
He also said that following their arrest, the police seized four vehicles, namely one Toyota Vellfire and a Honda Civic, as well as two Yamaha LC135 motorcycles, all valued at RM134,500.
“All the drugs and vehicles seized in the raid were worth RM209,000. The three men are now remanded for seven days until August 19 to assist with the investigation. The case is being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952,” he added. — Bernama
