KUALA LUMPUR: Drug-related cases and the number of arrests made by police nationwide between January and June this year rose by about 25% compared to the same period last year.
Federal police revealed that 69,648 cases were investigated, and 81,706 people were held in the first six months this year, compared to 55,560 cases and 66,889 arrests last year.
Royal Malaysia Police secretary DCP Datuk Noorsiah Mohd Saaduddin said today that seizures of various drugs worth RM262.3 million were made compared to RM683.3 million for the same period last year.
She said apart from regular narcotics, the seizures also included tens of thousand kilogrammes and litres of ketum leaves and ketum juice.
Noorsiah said six drug processing laboratories were mowed down with the arrest of 18 people.
Last year, she said 10 laboratories were shut down and 41 people were held.
Norsiah said there was also a rise in the number of those held under the Special Preventive Measures of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1985 at 997 compared to last year at 575.
She said police also impounded almost RM80 million in assets belonging to drug dealers and have managed to forfeit assets worth about RM9 million.
Noorsiah said last year, the forfeiture of assets was about RM8.6 million of the RM87.6 million worth of assets that was impounded.
She said police will continue to clamp down on drug-related activities and urged the public to channel information of narcotics dealings to the anti-narcotics police hotline at 012-208 7222.
