BANGI, March 26 — Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay has proposed amendments to the Poisons Act 1952 to update the list of drug-related chemicals in its schedule.
He said this would help streamline prosecution for drug abuse court cases.
The current list of 110 substances under the act must be expanded, as many new chemicals used in drug production have been detected, he added.
“That is why amendments to the Poisons Act 1952 are needed to add more substances to the schedule. Insya-Allah, the inclusion of additional chemicals in the act will not take long,” he said at a press conference after the launch of the Tims-tof device at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Faculty of Health Sciences here today.
Ayob Khan added that the update is also necessary as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has listed more than 1,000 substances and drugs that are dangerous and prone to abuse.
Regarding the launch, Ayob Khan said the acquisition of two devices, the Tims-tof and Dart TQ, costing RM3.9 million and RM2 million, respectively, will further facilitate the detection of new substances and drugs.
He also highlighted a new trend among drug syndicates to employ foreign expertise to produce new types of drugs using imported chemicals.
“Last month, the country scored its biggest success with the bust of a drug-producing lab and the arrest of nine China nationals. This is concerning, as Malaysia had drug labs before, but now they are using foreign nationals,” he said.
He also said that from January 2024 to February this year, police have seized 115 tonnes of drugs worth RM1.7 billion.
After the launch event, Ayob Khan also attended the Steering Committee Meeting on Strategic Cooperation for Education and Research in Forensic Science between the Royal Malaysia Police and UKM.
— Bernama
