KANGAR: An elderly couple's holiday trip to Hat Yai with friends and family turned sour on their return when all of them were briefly detained by Malaysian authorities at the border checkpoint in Padang Besar here.
This followed the discovery of 10 grammes of cannabis belonging to a family friend in the van that they were travelling in.
Perlis Customs Department director Ismail Hashim said in the Dec 2 incident, the compressed cannabis was found inside two bottles in the rear passenger seat.
"The family was travelling back in a rented Thai-registered Toyota Commuter van about 3.30pm, when they were flagged down at the border checkpoint for inspection.
"The elderly couple was travelling with their family members and their daughter's male friend, all aged between 21 and 71," he said at the state Customs headquarters today (Dec 13).
Ismail said the officers suspected something amiss upon finding a plastic bag containing food and drinks in the back passenger seat that was not taken down for inspection.
"The officers' suspicion was confirmed when they found two bottles of compressed cannabis weighing 10g worth about RM200," he said.
"Upon questioning, it was discovered that the drugs belonged to the family's friend, aged 30, who was with them on the trip," he said.
He added that initial investigations revealed that the suspect had purchased the drug in Hat Yai, where its sale and consumption was legal.
"Following the discovery, the suspect, alongside the family and the female van driver, were held at the border checkpoint for investigation.
"However, the elderly couple and their family were subsequently released, but we arrested the suspect for further investigations under a drug trafficking offence," he said.
In a separate case, Ismail said the Customs Department foiled an attempt to traffick in 30 kilogrammes of cannabis worth about RM93,000 in Batu Putih, Kuala Perlis, on Nov 28.
He said the drugs were found in two sacks, hidden in some bushes at Batu Putih beach near the Malaysia-Thailand border.
"Upon inspecting, the team from Kuala Perlis Customs office found 30 compressed cannabis in the sacks, which were waiting to be picked up by traffickers on Malaysia side," he said.
Ismail added that in the third case, the department had foiled an attempt to traffick in 60kg of ketum worth about RM2,400 in Simpang Empat here on Monday.
He said acting on information, an enforcement team from the Kuala Perlis office raided a location on a riverbank in Kampung Sungai Baru near here about 12.15am.
"The raiding team saw several men speeding off in a boat before discovering six packets of ketum on the riverbank," he said.