IPOH: Tucked away in a residential area of Meru, the house looked no different from the others, but unbeknownst to its neighbours inside was a clandestine lab.
A gang of drug traffickers was quietly manufacturing illegal drugs.
The raid on the house was one of five conducted by the police on Feb 13 and 14, said Perak police chief Comm Datuk Mior Faridalathrash Wahid.
“During the raids, we arrested three men in Perak and another three in Negri Sembilan.
“We also seized 9.42kg of heroine and 1.14kg of methamphetamine worth RM167,268,” he told reporters at the Perak contingent police headquarters here, yesterday.
The amount of drugs seized could have been used by over 52,000 addicts. Police also confiscated lab equipment, five cars and jewellery totalling more than RM180,000.
All the suspects, aged between 21 and 39, have a crime and drug record. Based on the urine tests, two of them were positive for ganja and opium, said Comm Mior.
“They have been remanded for six days from Feb 14 - 19 to help with the investigation,” he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 39(B) of the Dangerous Drug Act 1952.
Separately, Comm Mior said Perak police would not compromise when it comes to illegal activities in the state.
“I can assure you there are no prostitution activities in Perak. There might be gambling activities in several areas, but we have taken serious action against them.
“I have instructed OCPDs to take immediate action against such activities if they are occurring in their area,” he said.
On Feb 14, a twitter account under the name @ES_EdisiKhas claimed that several areas in Perak – namely Manjung, Batu Gajah and Ipoh – have online gambling shops as well as prostitution dens at entertainment clubs.
The account also claimed that no action was being taken by the police as they were being bribed by the syndicates.
He said the allegations were untrue and slanderous.
“Anyone who has such information can come forward so we can take action. We will investigate.
“If they are afraid their identity will be exposed, use the right channel where the whistleblower will be protected,” he said.