LANGKAWI, July 3 — Some 21 drug pushers have been detained in an operation to detect and combat trafficking, addiction and abuse of the prohibited substance in seven locations around the island in the last two days starting Monday.

Bukit Aman Narcotic Crimes Investigation Department (NCID) acting director Kamaruzaman Mamat said 31 people had been arrested in the operation for possession of drugs and 68 people for drug abuse.

He said the operation, involving 200 personnel from Bukit Aman NCID, Kedah police headquarters, Langkawi police headquarters and Langkawi’s Region 1 Marine Police, would be continued until the drug menace which has brought a bad image to this tourist island was eradicated.

He said all the suspects, aged between 13 and 41 years, were detained for drug trafficking, possession and addiction, with three of them being Myanmar nationals and five Thais.

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“During the operation, police seized various types of drugs such as heroin (82.78 grammes), syabu (3.37 gm), cannabis (4.48 gm) and eramine 5 pills (0.90 gm), all estimated to be worth RM3,600,” he told reporters at Bukit Malut, here today.

Commenting further, Kamaruzaman said investigations found that the drug supplies were obtained from outside and brought in through illegal fishing jetties found on the island.

“Based on the information received, no drugs are processed on the island, supplies are obtained from the mainland and brought to the island in small quantities.

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“We will tighten security by placing officers and NCID personnel at jetties to detect those who bring in the drugs. However, following this operation we find they have changed the routes and some have escaped from the island,” he said.

Meanwhile, commenting on Bukit Malut, Kamaruzaman said police would cooperate with the Village Community Management Council (VCMC) to eradicate the unhealthy menace in the settlement area.

‘From the feedback received from Bukit Malut VCMC we have identified six or seven boat areas here, which are believed to be used for drug collection and distribution,” he said. — Bernama