LABUAN: Eleven members of Sabah's largest drug syndicate, including its leader who is reportedly a 'Datuk', will face their charges in court in Kota Kinabalu.
Federal Narcotics Crims Investigation Department deputy director, Datuk Zainudin Ahmad, said the head of the Attorney General's Chambers serious crimes unit has given the go-ahead to charge the suspects.
He said the authorities have completed their probe on the syndicate, which had begun as a contraband-related group and later evolved into a drug syndicate which reached the Philippines and Indonesia.
"We have enough information to being the case to court. We have also obtained approval to charge the suspects," he said at a press conference after attending a workshop on Empowering the Community to Prevent Drug Abuse, here today.
Zainuddin said the authorities have also seized all assets belonging to the syndicate which have ties to drug activities.
In Dec last year, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said police had smashed Sabah's biggest drug ring with the arrest of a Datuk, who is also the patron of a non-governmental (NGO) organisation.
He said the 'Datuk' was among the 10 syndicate members arrested in a special operation between Bukit Aman and the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom).
Investigations revealed that the syndicate, which had been active since 2015, was the biggest drug syndicate in Sabah and has an international and local distribution network.
A 44-year old enforcement officer who is the transporter for the syndicate was also detained.
Meanwhile, Zainuddin said a number of districts in Sabah such as Tawau and Semporna have been identified as drug hotspots due to their proximity to the Eastern Sabah Safe Zone (ESSZone).