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KOTA BARU (Bernama): The Ministry of Internal Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP) seized 17,000 kg of subsidized bagged cooking oil before it could be smuggled from Kelantan to a neighboring country.
Putrajaya KPDNHEP’s deputy director of enforcement (operations) Shamsul Nizam Khalil said two men were also arrested when law enforcement officers seized the cooking oil during a raid at a store in Kampung Belukar, Pasir Mas, near here, at 12:30 p.m. yesterday.
The raid was carried out in conjunction with the Maritime Police of Pengkalan Kubor Region 3 and Battalion 8 of the General Operations Force.
The operation was carried out on the basis of intelligence and surveillance carried out by the ministry’s intelligence section in Putrajaya on a cooking oil wholesaler in Melaka, he said in a statement on Tuesday (August 10th).
“We have identified a truck suspected of being used by a union to transport cooking oil to Kelantan for the purpose of inappropriate activities involving subsidized cooking oil,” he added.
“A total of 17,000 kg of cooking oil in one kg sachets were found in the truck and some were transferred to the store during an inspection.
“The store was suspected of being used as a storage and transitional center before cooking oil was smuggled into a neighboring country,” he said.
Shamsul Nizam said the union’s modus operandi was to secure the supply of subsidized cooking oil from companies in Melaka and the Klang Valley using licenses owned by other companies.
“Based on the documents found, the cooking oil was destined for a wholesaler in Melaka, but it was instead redirected to Kelantan for the purpose of being smuggled,” he said.
He said two men, namely the truck driver and his attendant, were also arrested to help investigate the case.
“Further investigations will be carried out to identify the owner of the premises and the main suspect involved in the case,” he said. – Bernama
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