Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian airport police have seized 29 kg of ketamine worth 1.15 million ringgit ($350,000) believed to have come from India, news reports said Tuesday.

Customs officers at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport Sunday discovered the ketamine powder, an anaesthetic that has become popular as a party drug, stored in two black plastic bags and hidden inside a steel container resembling an air conditioning unit during a random search.

A 47-year-old local man was detained, customs deputy director general Mardina Alwi was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times newspaper.

The suspect had arrived at the airport from Hyderabad, India, she said.

Earlier this month, an Indian national was arrested at the airport for attempting to smuggle in ketamine worth 1.4 million ringgit that was hidden inside a water heater, the report said.

"Our investigations showed that many cases involving ketamine were from India," Mardina said.

She said customs police would work with Indian authorities on the smuggling case, adding that the suspect has been remanded for questioning.

Malaysia's tough drug laws prescribe a mandatory death sentence by hanging for those found guilty of smuggling most types of drugs.

 

Source : IANS