PADANG BESAR, Jul 12 – Eighteen sacks of ketum leaves, weighing more than 500 kilogrammes, were seized by the General Operations Force at a watermelon farm in Chuping here yesterday. A 26-year-old man, who is a local, was detained, said Padang Besar district police chief Supt Ghazani Abd. Ghani.
He said nine men in two Mitsubishi Pajero four-wheel-drive (4WD) vehicles and a motorcycle were attempting to smuggle the leaves into a neighbouring country when the GOF raided the area at about 5.30pm yesterday. However, they fled after realising the presence of the GOF, but one of them was apprehended, he said in a statement here today. He said the sacks of ketum leaves were found in one of the 4WD vehicles. — Bernama
