Customs officers seized ketamine weighing 169kg worth RM3.04 million at Port Klang and the KL International Airport (KLIA), Sepang last Tuesday.

    

Its director-general Ibrahim Jaapar said in the first incident, a container suspected of containing drugs was detained by the Customs at Klang Port.

He said it was taken to Customs Narcotics Branch here the next day and inspected in the presence of its shipping agent last Thursday.

Customs officers found 130 packets of ketamine hidden within 250 boxes of vibuthi (holy ash), he told reporters today.

    

Weighing 150kg, he said the drug could fetch RM2.7 million in the streets.

    

Ibrahim said the container was also laden with 150 gunny sacks of peanuts and 50 gunny sacks of other foodstuff.

Fictitious address

    

He said checks by the customs showed that the designated address of the receiver of the consignment was fictitious.

"The syndicate not only used fictitious designated address but also planned to take the container out Port Klang without the customs' knowledge.

    

"We dubbed such containers as 'kontena terbang' (flying container) and this is an organised smuggling," he added.

Ibrahim said in another incident, customs officers found 19kg of ketamine worth RM343,000 hidden in electric appliances belonging to an Indian national in his 40s at the KLIA at 2.45pm last Tuesday.

The man, who arrived by Thai Airways was stopped by Custom officers when a scanning machine detected a suspicious substance in two boxes of electric soup warmers belonging to him.

Ibrahim said the man was remanded for one week to facilitate investigations.

- Bernama