A 38-year-old unemployed man has been arrested after police uncovered a ketum processing and distribution operation allegedly run from a rented house garage in Tanah Putih.
The suspect is believed to have been operating alone before his activities were detected following intelligence gathering and a raid conducted by the Kuantan District Narcotics Criminal Investigation Division on Friday.
During the operation, police seized about 500kg of ketum leaves and 500 litres of processed ketum liquid believed to be intended for distribution around the district.
Authorities also confiscated various equipment used in the processing and packaging of the substance, including cooking pots, gas stoves, weighing scales, storage containers and packaged ketum drinks ready for sale.
The total value of the seized items is estimated at around RM27,500.
Investigations revealed that the suspect had been actively processing and selling the ketum supply from the garage premises to local customers.
He has since been remanded until June 9 to assist further investigations, while police continue efforts to identify others possibly linked to the distribution network.
