MIRI: The General Operations Force (GOF) seized smuggled goods worth about RM603, 514 during a raid on a storeroom in Jalan Maigold Golden Royal Villa Senadin here last Wednesday.
GOF 12th Battallion commanding officer Supt Tan Hiap Seng said the goods seized in the raid dubbed Ops Libas included 1,834 boxes of canned beer, 202 boxes of beer (bottles), 750 cartons of cigarettes and 2,070 cartons of various types of kretek (clove cigarettes) kept inside the store room.
Tan said the goods were meant for distribution to shops in the surrounding area.
“The store room was meant to be a transit point for the goods before they are distributed to nearby shops,” he said.
He added that the alcoholic beverages were worth RM172, 710 while the cigarettes were valued at RM380, 804.
The raid was held in collaboration with the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) Miri branch.
A man in his 30’s, believed to be a caretaker of the store, was arrested to facilitate further investigation.
“We also seized cash amounting to RM20,000 from the suspect who attempted to bribe our personnel with the money to avoid being arrested,” Tan said.
All the seized items including the cash and a van were handed over to the Miri police headquarters and MACC for further action.
The case is being investigated under Section 17(b) of the Malaysian Anti Corruption Act 2009 and Section 135 (1) (d) of the Customs Act 1967.
