PUTRAJAYA - The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) has uncovered suspected diesel misappropriation involving fishing boats during a raid at a private jetty in Manjung, Perak, seizing items worth more than RM587,000.
Its enforcement director-general Datuk Azman Adam said the raid, conducted under the integrated Ops Tiris 4.0 on Oct 27, also resulted in the arrest of five men, comprising two locals and three foreign nationals, to assist in investigations.
He said the operation, launched following complaints about suspicious activities involving controlled goods, led to the discovery of a boat transferring diesel to another vessel at the jetty.
"An inspection of the two boats revealed several tanks containing a liquid suspected to be diesel, totalling an estimated 3,592 litres,” he said in a statement here today.
Azman said enforcement officers also found pumps and hoses believed to have been used to transfer diesel between the two boats.
"KPDN seized two boats, diesel, equipment used to transfer fuel, relevant documents and a mobile phone to assist in investigations, with the total value of the items estimated at RM587,219.45,” he said.
Azman said the case was being investigated under the Control of Supplies Act 1961, with further investigations underway to determine the source of the diesel supply and identify those involved.
Meanwhile, he said 1,587 cases were recorded from 128,239 inspections conducted nationwide under Ops Tiris 4.0 between March 16 and Oct 28.
Azman said that the operation also resulted in the arrest of 522 individuals and the seizure of controlled goods worth RM15.31 million, while the overall value of all items seized stood at RM79.2 million. - BERNAMA