KLANG: Drug traffickers are resorting to a new modus operandi in their attempt to smuggle amphetamine pills, also known as 'pil kuda' out of the country by hiding them in clothing pieces and declaring their consignments as clothing to evade detection and arrest by the authorities.
This was uncovered when the Customs Department seized a package containing 6,000 amphetamine pills worth RM9,000 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport's air mail and courier centre last month.
Central Zone Customs Department assistant director-general Norlela Ismail said the pills were stacked inside three packets which were hidden inside the wrapped jeans found in the package.
"The consignment was declared as clothing to avoid being detected by the authorities before it was sent to countries in Southeast Asia," she told reporters yesterday.
Norlela added that the department is in the process of tracking down the sender of the package, believed to be from one of the East Coast states, based on the address displayed on the consignment.
She said the case is being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 for drug trafficking.
In a separate case, Norlela said the department seized a container with four million sticks of cigarettes worth more than RM2.9 million including RM320,000 in unpaid tax.
She said the contraband was seized when the department carried out checks on containers at the West Port Free Zone on June 4.
"The syndicate had declared the goods as 'wood marquetry and inlaid wood' in the manifest for the shipment to avoid being detected by the authorities," she said.