JOHOR BARU: Drug traffickers are now resorting to offering jelly laced with ecstasy to attract more buyers.
This was uncovered when a team from the state narcotics investigation department seized over RM3 million worth of drugs, including ecstasy-laced jelly, the first of such seizure in Johor, during a five-day operation here and Tangkak recently.
Two men were arrested when the state NCID team seized the drugs from four premises during the operation that kicked off last Saturday.
Johor police chief Commissioner M. Kumar said the syndicate, believed to have been operating in the state since June, came under police radar following surveillance and intelligence gathering.
He said the first suspect, a 33-year-old man, was arrested when the raiding party stormed his vehicle parked near an apartment here and found a sum of drugs on Aug 3.
"Preliminary investigation showed the vehicle was turned into a mobile storage unit for the drugs to enable easier trafficking of the contraband for local markets," he said.
His arrest led the raiding party to pick up the second suspect, a 36-year-old man, at a house in Tangkak yesterday.
"The second suspect is the accomplice to the first suspect," he said.
Police investigations revealed that the ecstasy-laced jelly worth RM300,000 which was packed in 55 plastic containers would fetch between RM150 and RM200 per container.
The syndicate members also offered combo packages to their regular buyers, who could get the jelly and juice that were laced with drugs at RM480 per package.
The juice-laced drugs packed in household brand bottle packings were sold at RM200.
Other types of drugs seized during the operation included 18,634.60 grams of ecstasy powder worth about RM3.11 million.
"Also seized ketamine worth more than RM4,000, ecstasy pills and Erimin 5 pills," he said.
The total seizure worth RM3,447,002, could supply approximately 227,546 addicts.
Police, he said, also seized a car and two motorcycles as well as RM160 during the operation.
"The suspects tested negative for drugs but both of them had records in criminal and drug-related offences," he said.
They were remanded to facilitate investigations under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 for trafficking drugs.