MALAYSIAN Customs intercepted a container at West Port, Port Klang, containing 302.2kg of a white powdery substance suspected to be cocaine, reports Singapore's Straits Times.
The drugs, originating from Brazil and en route to Maharashtra, India, were concealed within bags of beans. The estimated value of the seized drugs is US$17.4 million.
This marks the second major drug bust by the Royal Malaysian Customs Department (RMCD) in about a month.
On April 25, the RMCD discovered one tonne of Ecstasy pills hidden inside compressors within a container that arrived at Penang's North Butterworth Container Terminal. Interestingly, the vessel carrying a load of beans in this recent seizure also passed through Singapore waters after arriving on May 21.
The cargo was transferred from the ship Hyundai Premium to AS Flora, which eventually arrived in Port Klang.
Hyundai Merchant Marine confirmed that a vessel did dock at Port Klang, but there is no record of what happened to the 10 containers of beans.
The intended recipient, HSS International in Chennai, has no information regarding the seizure by Malaysian authorities.
A source involved in the investigation expressed apprehension that drug syndicates are using malaysia as a central drug hub in Southeast Asia, utilising air cargo and shipping containers.
Simultaneously with the arrival of AS Flora in Port Klang, RMCD officers inspected a shipment of ceramic vases and pots that arrived in Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam on Malaysia Airlines Flight MH6127.
Additionally, five out of the 15 boxes contained 'white chunks,' which were later identified as 150kg of ketamine.
The street value of ketamine is currently unknown. The drugs were concealed in aluminum foil bags to hinder detection by customs officials.
In March 2021, the RMCD seized amphetamines from containers in Port Klang, constituting the largest drug seizure in the country's history.
Customs director-general Abdul Latif Abdul Kadir had revealed that 16 tonnes of the drug were concealed within the castor wheels of three 40-foot containers arriving from the Middle East.
SeaNews Turkey
The drugs, originating from Brazil and en route to Maharashtra, India, were concealed within bags of beans. The estimated value of the seized drugs is US$17.4 million.
This marks the second major drug bust by the Royal Malaysian Customs Department (RMCD) in about a month.
On April 25, the RMCD discovered one tonne of Ecstasy pills hidden inside compressors within a container that arrived at Penang's North Butterworth Container Terminal. Interestingly, the vessel carrying a load of beans in this recent seizure also passed through Singapore waters after arriving on May 21.
The cargo was transferred from the ship Hyundai Premium to AS Flora, which eventually arrived in Port Klang.
Hyundai Merchant Marine confirmed that a vessel did dock at Port Klang, but there is no record of what happened to the 10 containers of beans.
The intended recipient, HSS International in Chennai, has no information regarding the seizure by Malaysian authorities.
A source involved in the investigation expressed apprehension that drug syndicates are using malaysia as a central drug hub in Southeast Asia, utilising air cargo and shipping containers.
Simultaneously with the arrival of AS Flora in Port Klang, RMCD officers inspected a shipment of ceramic vases and pots that arrived in Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam on Malaysia Airlines Flight MH6127.
Additionally, five out of the 15 boxes contained 'white chunks,' which were later identified as 150kg of ketamine.
The street value of ketamine is currently unknown. The drugs were concealed in aluminum foil bags to hinder detection by customs officials.
In March 2021, the RMCD seized amphetamines from containers in Port Klang, constituting the largest drug seizure in the country's history.
Customs director-general Abdul Latif Abdul Kadir had revealed that 16 tonnes of the drug were concealed within the castor wheels of three 40-foot containers arriving from the Middle East.
SeaNews Turkey