Three women from Sabah detained at Jakarta airport for smuggling drugs
Three Malaysian women, aged between 30 and 39 from Sabah, were detained at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
This is after authorities discovered drugs in their luggage and shoes on Monday (3 Aug).
Two suspects had previous drug records
Bukit Aman Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department (NCID) director Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the Indonesian National Police (POLRI) informed Malaysian police about the arrests.
Two of the suspects have prior drug-related records and a documented history of substance abuse.
However, Datuk Hussein said the amount of drugs seized was small. Additionally, it was believed to be intended for personal use.
Source: Alcohol and Drug Foundation, for illustration purposes only.
“The arrest of these three women is found to be unrelated to the earlier cases involving the detention of a pilot and a 22-year-old man in Indonesia,” he told Bernama after appearing on the Waspada programme on Bernama Radio.
Women arrived from Kota Kinabalu
The three women reportedly arrived at Terminal 2F of Soekarno-Hatta International Airport after a flight from Kota Kinabalu.
Officers detected the suspected drugs, which led to a thorough search.
They discovered suspected narcotics concealed in toiletries bags inside luggage, handbags, medicine packets, jacket pockets and shoes they were wearing.
Source: detikNews
The total evidence seized included 0.5 grams and 0.3 grams of ash suspected to be cocaine, along with 2 grams and 1.4 grams of suspected cocaine powder.
Officers also recovered 4.2 grams and 2.4 grams of suspected MDMA pills, 1.8 grams of suspected ketamine powder, 16.9 grams of rolled tobacco allegedly mixed with ketamine, and a vape cartridge suspected to contain ketamine, according to detikNews.
Initial field tests were conducted on the items, and further investigations are ongoing.
Malaysia tightens border checks
Datuk Hussein said Malaysia’s location could make it attractive to international drug trafficking syndicates seeking to move drugs to neighbouring countries.
Source: Google Maps, for illustration purposes only.
“Most of these drug trafficking syndicates originate from countries north of Malaysia, and we become a transit route for them to move to Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines and several other countries,” he said.
He added that Malaysian authorities would continue strengthening procedures at entry and exit points to prevent the country from being used as a transit hub for drug trafficking.
The NCID seized 89 tonnes of various drugs across Malaysia in 2025. Nearly 46 tonnes have been seized in the first six months of 2026, Datuk Hussein said.
Also read: 22 monks arrested at Sri Lanka airport with 110kg of cannabis, may not have known about drugs
22 monks arrested at Sri Lanka airport with 110kg of cannabis, may not have known about drugs
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Featured image adapted from Google Maps and Alcohol and Drug Foundation, for illustration purposes only.
