Malaysian arrested in Macau over RM2mil heroin smuggling bid

Police said the suspect was apprehended at Macau International Airport after he collected his checked luggage, which was found to contain heroin in cans labelled as tuna spread. (Macau Police pic)

PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian man has been arrested at Macau International Airport for allegedly attempting to smuggle nearly 3kg of heroin worth about RM2.09 million.

Macau police said the 24-year-old arrived on a flight from a Southeast Asian country late on June 20, Berita Harian reported.

Acting on intelligence, officers from the narcotics division detained the suspect after he collected his checked luggage.

A search of the luggage uncovered 49 boxes of tuna biscuits. Each box contained two packets of biscuits and a can labelled as tuna spread.

However, several of the cans were found to contain white powder instead of tuna spread.

Forensic tests later confirmed the substance to be 2,987g of heroin, with an estimated street value of 4.18 million Macau patacas (RM2.09 million).

Police said investigations found that the man was recruited by a Malaysian drug trafficking syndicate, which promised him RM3,000 upon completion of the delivery.

He was allegedly instructed to collect the drugs in a Southeast Asian country before bringing them to Macau.

Police said the drugs were intended for delivery to a nearby region.

The suspect has been referred to the public prosecutor’s office on charges of illegally trafficking narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.