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JOHOR BARU: A high-ranking police officer in charge of a district in the state and his staff could face strict action or dismissal after nine jail officials allegedly helped smuggle drugs into the center detention of the district headquarters.
Illicit drugs are believed to have “fed” the habit of some of those arrested.
Johor Police Chief Comm Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said the nine arrested, including a female police officer, were between the ages of 20 and 36 and ranged from corporal to sheriff.
One of them is even revealed to have a criminal record.
The incident came to light after a routine drug test of 16 detainees at Ulu Choh Jail showed that five of them tested positive for methamphetamine on November 22.
“The five detainees were traced to the police dungeon in the district, where they were previously held,” Comm Ayob said at a press conference at the state police headquarters here yesterday.
Comm Ayob mentioned the position of the superior officer and the district he was in charge of, but did not name him.
An additional investigation by the state narcotics department and the Bukit Aman Department of Integrity and Compliance (JIPS) in said police cell on November 29 discovered 38.6 g of syabu, 42.2 g of heroin and tobacco per a value of RM5,977.50, revealed Comm Ayob. .
“Subsequently, a drug test carried out on the 129 detainees in the cell found 22 of them positive for methamphetamine, morphine and tetrahydrocannabinol.
“The nine police officers apparently participated in helping one of the locked up detainees, a suspected drug trafficker, obtain drugs to distribute inside the prison since the beginning of November.
“There was even a designated cell in the dungeon that was turned into a ‘drug port’ for detainees to get their fix.
“The police involved are said to be paid between RM 50 and RM 1,500 for each package that is smuggled into the cell,” said the police chief.
Two of the arrested officers, he said, also tested positive for methamphetamine, and one of them had a criminal record for armed robbery in 2017.
Comm Ayob said that investigations were underway to investigate whether additional personnel were involved.
He instructed JIPS to investigate the superior officer as well as the chief of his district’s narcotics department and the chief of the district’s police station.
“The supervision of the lockdown falls under the purview of the superior officer and could be due to the supervision that led to the incident happening right under their noses,” he said.
Those found negligent face actions such as demotion or, in the worst case, dismissal, he noted.
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