KUANTAN: Pahang police have arrested 9,662 individuals for various drug offences this year until August, and seized illegal substances worth over RM7.9mil.
Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said that during the same period, the state police narcotics crime investigation department also confiscated, among others, various vehicles and over RM2.2mil in cash.
He said in addition to daily arrests, police have implemented various anti-drug operations in the state through the 2nd Ops Hawk in Pekan, Maran, Lipis and here from Sept 5-7.
He said in the operations involving over 100 officers and personnel, 287 individuals we arrested including nine women aged between 17 and 60 and also various types of drugs seized valued at an estimated RM38,830.
"Among the offences committed were for drug trafficking, testing positive and arrests involving wanted persons, in addition to four men being held under the Dangerous Drugs (Special Preventive Measures) Act 1985," he said in a statement on Friday (Sept 8).
He added that the operations targeted Felda areas, riversides and fishermen's jetties.
Yahaya added that through Ops Hawk, police managed to reduce the number of hotspots to obtain drugs in state by shutting down five hotspots in Felda areas and one in a riverside area.
He said that police also took the initiative by enhancing enforcement under Section 39C of the Dangerous Drugs Act, which is for hardcore addicts or repeat offenders to be handed a longer jail term of not less than five years and whipping.
"This approach can separate the hardcore addicts and new addicts, whereby through this separation the new addicts have a higher chance to be rehabilitated without being influenced by the hardcore users," he explained. – Bernama
