TAWAU – The Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom) seized 54.35 kg of syabu and 234 ecstasy pills, worth over RM2 million, in a speedboat at the Sungai Tawau Lama estuary here, on Monday.
ESSCom commander Datuk Ahmad Fuad Othman said the seizure was made in the Illegals Prevention Operation (OCP) after the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) radar detected a speedboat from Tawau heading towards Indonesia at 9.20 pm.
“Marine assets from the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN), Marine Police and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) were mobilised to track and intercept the boat. However, upon realising it was being chased, the boat turned back and sped off towards the estuary.
“Security personnel who were on an OCP land patrol raided the boat but the two suspects managed to escape,” he said in a press conference here, today.
Ahmad Fuad said that inspection of the boat found three boxes with 51 Chinese tea packets containing syabu and another plastic packet containing the 234 ecstasy pills.
The drugs and speedboat with a 200hp engine, worth RM2.495 million, were seized and brought to the Tawau District Police Headquarters for further investigation, he added.
Ahmad Fuad said the drug seizure was the largest since the land and sea OCP was launched in March.
“The OCP is an integrated patrolling initiative involving the police, MAF and the MMEA, aimed at curbing the entry of illegal immigrants, besides dealing with smuggling and kidnapping for ransom activities. – Bernama, November 25, 2020
