KUALA LUMPUR: More than 100 police officers have tested positive for drugs in an operation conducted in every police contingent since Aug 13, said Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Abdul Hamid Bador yesterday.
He said he was shocked by the number of policemen whose urine tests in Ops Blue Devil were positive for various drugs particularly syabu, indicating that drug abuse in the police force was at a critical and serious level.
Of the 100 addicts traced in the operation between Aug 13 and yesterday, 86 tested positive for syabu, six for amphetamines and opiates, two for cannabis (ganja) and one for ketamine.
“If PDRM personnel who are given the responsibility and trust to enforce the law, are themselves involved in such activities, what is going to happen to the country,” he told Bernama News Channel here.
Referring to the previous incidence of drug abuse among the police force in Latin America, Abdul Hamid said a thorough drug eradication effort must be undertaken in Malaysia and in this connection, the operation to trace errant personnel would continue, with instructions already given to the Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Mohd Khalil Kader Mohd not to give the the operation a rest.
The police chief noted that personnel involved in drug abuse were also suspected of committing extortion and bribery, with foreign workers as their victims.
“They are my targets (personnel involved in drugs), apart from certain groups in units within PDRM…there is evidence that this is what is actually happening,” he said, adding that drug addiction costs a lot of money and given the low salaries of policemen, they were bound to look for illegal sources of money.
The operation which was aimed at cleansing the force of corruptive elements and improving its integrity, was also being used to facilitate sting operations on drug-producing laboratories, drug traffickers and addicts, he said, explaining that this initiative was anticipated to make a significant impact on ongoing drug eradication efforts.
Meanwhile, when contacted, Mohd Khalil said a total of 3,438 policemen had undergone urine tests as a result of Ops Blue Devil.
He said the officers who had tested positive would face legal charges just like members of the public, and this would entail going through police investigations, followed by court action.
–BERNAMA
