SHAH ALAM, Sept 28 — Malaysian authorities are thwarting near-daily attempts to smuggle cannabis flowers out of the country through Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), with foreigners accounting for most arrests.
Malaysia Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) director Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said enforcement efforts at KLIA had been intensified, particularly following the arrest of a Malaysian pilot in Indonesia over an alleged drug smuggling case.
"In most cases, it is not Malaysians but foreigners," New Straits Times reported him as saying after the closing ceremony of the AKPS Basic Officer Training Course Series 1/2026 at the Police Training Centre (Pulapol) yesterday.
Shuhaily said the agency has been carrying out targeted screening at both KLIA Terminals 1 and 2, with AKPS coordinating the efforts with Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB).
He said the agency has been intercepting attempts to take cannabis flowers out of the country almost daily or, at the very least, on a weekly basis.
The heightened checks came after a Malaysian pilot was arrested at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Indonesia in July for allegedly attempting to bring more than 70,000 ecstasy pills weighing 25kg into the country.
Indonesian authorities also seized 2.74g of methamphetamine and another 0.0825g of methamphetamine residue from the pilot.
Shuhaily said AKPS has been assigned three main responsibilities at international airports under 17 government initiatives introduced to strengthen border security.
"The three main areas are coordinating targeted screening, intelligence matters and K9 operations at international airports. We are putting all these measures in place and the public will see them being implemented at airports.”
He said the agency's enforcement efforts also contributed to the prevention of more than RM265 million in seizures and revenue leakages so far this year.
The figure is almost three times higher than the RM80 million recorded last year.
According to Shuhaily, e-waste and drug smuggling were among the main contributors to the amount recorded this year.
He attributed the increase to stronger enforcement, including the introduction of new measures and efforts to improve the work culture among MCBA personnel.
