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KUALA LUMPUR: Police in Malaysia have busted the purported sale of drug-laced vapes containing liquid drug furanylfentanyl - also known as “zombie drug” - over the course of a five-day joint operation in Kuala Lumpur.
The synthetic opioid is an illegal street variant of fentanyl - up to 100 times stronger than morphine - and poses a high risk of overdose even in small quantities.
Fentanyl, which is used medically as an analgesic and anaesthetic, is strictly controlled in Malaysia under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
The joint operation - named Op Vape 1.0 - led to about 18.5kg of furanylfentanyl seized along with other drugs and paraphernalia, with the overall value of the seizures estimated at RM4.6 million (US$1.16 million), said director of federal Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) Hussein Omar Khan at a press conference on Tuesday (Apr 21).
The operations were conducted from Apr 13 to Apr 17.
"The joint operation targeted premises suspected of selling vape products laced with drugs, leading to widespread inspections and multiple seizures nationwide," he said.
It involved 1,177 NCID personnel and 2,011 officers from other enforcement agencies including those from the health ministry and the National Anti-Drugs Agency.
He said five people were arrested during the raids that uncovered furanylfentanyl: three in Taman Bukit Cheras on Apr 13 and two in Sentul on Apr 17.
The suspects have been remanded until Apr 24, new outlet The Star reported.
In the Apr 13 raid, nine bottles containing liquid believed to be furanylfentanyl weighing 16.8kg were seized.
Meanwhile, checks after the Apr 17 operations uncovered “155 vape cartridges suspected to contain furanylfentanyl weighing 1.7kg and 22 packets of MDMA powder weighing 0.66kg,” Hussein was quoted as saying by The Star.
"The total amount of furanylfentanyl liquid seized was 18.56kg, with an estimated value of RM2.8 million," he added.
While The Star and Free Malaysia Today reported that the drug-laced vapes were sold openly at vape outlets, another local news outlet New Straits Times (NST) said they were instead restricted to select buyers.
Separately, Hussein said that a total of 1,670 vape outlets were inspected nationwide, with 728 found in violation of regulations.
"Overall, 20 individuals were arrested, with seizures of 8,091 devices, 5,257 cartridges and 19.67kg of drugs.
"Also seized were 186.54kg of vape liquid not containing drugs, bringing the total value of seizures to RM4.6 million," he said.
Earlier, NST reported last week that police foiled an attempt to introduce fentanyl into Malaysia after it was found concealed in vape cartridges during coordinated raids in the Klang Valley area.
The 400 vape cartridges were among more than half a tonne of drugs worth over RM31.5 million seized after police crippled a syndicate believed to be supplied by a drug ring operating within the Golden Triangle.
The Golden Triangle region of Southeast Asia is one of the major producers of illicit drugs.
This region includes northern Thailand, western Laos, and eastern Myanmar.
