JOHOR BARU, May 7 — The Region Two Marine Police Force (PPM) seized 427 boxes of firecrackers and fireworks worth RM854,000 during an operation at a warehouse in Taman Scientex Senai here last Sunday.
The operation, called Op Taring Landai, also saw the arrest of a 47-year-old man who was believed to be the caretaker of the warehouse.
Johor police chief M. Kumar said the raid on the warehouse facility was carried out at 5.30pm after more than a week of surveillance conducted by the Region Two PPM’s intelligence unit.
“The raiding team found various types of unlicensed firecrackers and fireworks stored in the warehouse.
“This included 90 boxes of Happy Boom Celebration Red Fire, 109 boxes of T8500A Pop 12/50/35 and 203 boxes of type EP 37.
“A follow-up inspection was also carried out on a container outside the warehouse where police found various types of firecrackers,” he told reporters at the Region Two PPM headquarters in Pengkalan Rinting here today.
Kumar was accompanied by Region Two PPM commander Assistant Commissioner Muhd Zailani Abdullah and other senior officers.
The state’s top cop said initial investigations revealed that the syndicate has been active for over a month where they used the warehouse located in a gated area to cloak their activities.
He added that the firecrackers and fireworks did not possess the required permits and were believed to be stock for the coming Hari Raya Haji.
Kumar said police also found that the male suspect who was earlier arrested had previous criminal records.
“The suspect has been remanded to assist investigators,” he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 8 of the Explosives Act 1957 for possession of explosive items.
