Kuala Lumpur:  An Indian has been arrested at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport for allegedly carrying 5.34 kilogrammes of illegal drugs worth USD 288,155.  The 27-year-old, who arrived here from Chennai by a Malaysia Airlines flight, landed in Customs Department's net upon his arrival at the airport.

“He was arrested after being found with a crystal-like substance which tested positive for Methamphetamine,” Customs Department's director Datuk Chik Omar Chik Lim was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times today.  

The man's identity was not disclosed.  “A thorough examination of his hand luggage revealed several packages containing the drugs that were hidden in a secret compartment,” he said.

The latest arrest brings the number of foreigners arrested by the department to 18 between January and December this year.

In total, the department had recorded 32 cases involving 347 kilogrammes of drugs worth over 62 million Malaysian ringgits (USD 17.6 million) this year with the arrests of 22 individuals.