KUALA LUMPUR: A Nigerian living like a king in his little palace hideout in Lukut, Port Dickson, was nabbed by the police on suspicion of running a multi-million ringgit international drug syndicate.

After six months of surveillance, police moved in on the 32-year-old Nigerian, who has been living a life of luxury in his bungalow house on Saturday and nabbed him and his 31-year-old live-in girlfriend whom he referred to as his wife.

Police investigations also revealed that the suspect, who had been operating in the country for less than a year, owns a hotel in his home country believed to be paid for with money gained from his illegal activities here.

Bukit Aman Director of Anti-Narcotics Investigations Department Commissioner Datuk Noor Rashid Ibrahim said police seized two cars - a BMW and a Toyota Camry - from the suspect who is also believed to own several high-value properties in the country.

“With his arrest, we hope to find out more about the syndicate's modus operandi and nab more suspects who worked for the syndicate in the days to come,” he told a press conference here yesterday.

Massive drug haul: The bags with hidden compartments used by the syndicate to smuggle in syabu and heroin worth a street value of RM7mil that were seized by police. — Bernama

Comm Noor Rashid said police got their break in the case when they arrested the mastermind's right-hand man in Taman Sri Hartamas on Sunday.

Police found 26 packages containing syabu weighing 28kg and 17 packages of heroin weighing 16.9kg in his unit. All the drugs were found in hidden compartments of bags.

In the condominium, police also found a dozen other bags with hidden compartments which were believed to have been used before for drug smuggling.

“The women recruited by the syndicate fly into Malaysia ferrying the drugs in hidden compartments. They pass through KLIA before handing the bags to the syndicate contact person here,” he said.

Assets belonging to the man, his girlfriend and his right-hand man in Malaysia worth millions of ringgit have been frozen. The three have been remanded for seven days.

Noor Rashid revealed that in unrelated cases last week, six people from Zambia, Iran and Nigeria, including women aged between 25 and 38, were arrested in KLIA, Puchong and Damansara for drug smuggling.

Drugs seized in these cases have a street value of RM7mil.

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