AUTHORITIES have seized illicit goods worth over RM4.3 million in a series of integrated operations targeting illegal crude palm oil storage, cockfighting syndicates and contraband sales in Sabah and Kedah.
The Bukit Aman Internal Security and Public Order Department’s Wildlife Crime Bureau / Special Intelligence Investigation (WCB/PSK), together with enforcement partners, conducted two major raids in Lahad Datu and Tawau on Thursday and Friday, followed by a third in Kulim, Kedah.
In Lahad Datu, a joint operation with the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) at 7pm Thursday led to the arrest of four men aged between 20 and 31 at a store on a palm oil plantation.
“We seized a lorry head with a tanker containing 30,000 litres of crude palm oil, a van, three motorised oil pumps with hoses and tanks, and drums filled with crude palm oil,” said JKDNKA Director Datuk Seri Azmi Abu Kassim in a statement on Sunday.
“The total amount of crude palm oil seized is estimated to weigh 30,148 tonnes, with a market value of RM152,090. The overall value of the seizure in this operation is estimated at RM645,890.”
The case is being investigated under Regulation 5(1)(b) of the MPOB (Licensing) Regulations 2005, with police also issuing five summonses for vehicle-related offences including expired road tax, lack of insurance, and driving without a licence.
In a separate operation the following day in Tawau, police uncovered an illegal cockfighting syndicate. Three men — including Indonesian and Filipino nationals — were arrested and 622 fighting cocks seized in raids on two locations.
“At the first location in Kampung Apas Parit, two Indonesian men and two Filipino men were arrested, and police seized 470 fighting cocks believed to be from the Philippines, 40 rooster spur knives, 180 units of vitamins and 500 chicken cages,” said Azmi.
At the second location in Kampung Membalua Off Jalan Apas, police detained a 57-year-old man along with 152 fighting cocks. The total estimated value of items seized in both Tawau locations stood at RM3,287,708.
The suspects are being investigated under Section 15(1) of the Animal Welfare Enactment 2015, Sections 55B, 39B and 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63, and Section 6 of the Dangerous Weapons Act 1958.
Separately, a raid in Kulim, Kedah uncovered RM416,668 worth of untaxed cigarettes, alcohol and other items at a grocery shop. The WCB/PSK-led operation, carried out at 11am Thursday, resulted in the arrest of a 35-year-old local man believed to be the shop owner.
“The items seized included 118,520 sticks of untaxed cigarettes, 333 bottles and cans of alcoholic beverages, one Ball Python snake, 62 cylinders of subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and RM35,000 in cash,” Azmi said.
The suspect is being investigated under multiple laws, including Section 135(1)(d) of the Customs Act 1967, Section 29(1) of the Minor Offences Act 1955, Section 60(1) of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010, and Section 16 of the Control of Supplies Act 1961. - July 20, 2025
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