KUALA LUMPUR: Three Singaporeans are among four men who face the death penalty for drug trafficking in Malaysia.
The trio – Quek Kien Seng, 45, Tristan Chew Jin Zhong, 25 and Ivan Tan Zhi Xuan, 31 – were charged on Thursday morning (Jun 26) along with Malaysian Kong Sien Mee, 51, at the magistrates’ court in Ampang, Kuala Lumpur.
The men nodded as the charges were read, news outlet The New Straits Times reported.
No plea was recorded from them as the case falls under the jurisdiction of the High Court.
The four are accused of trafficking 9.42 litres of liquid cocaine, which were stored in 4,958 vape pods that were seized by the police.
The Royal Malaysian Police Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department estimated the drugs to be worth RM7.29 million (US$1.71 million).
The men were arrested at 11.45am last Thursday (Jun 19) at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur in two separate raids by the Kuala Lumpur police.
The men were charged under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
If convicted, they face the death penalty or life imprisonment. If they avoid the death penalty, they face a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane.
Defence lawyer Ille Maryam Yusnawannie appeared for Quek, Chew and Tan.
The Malaysian, Kong, did not have a legal representative, according to news outlet New Straits Times.
Their next hearing is on Sep 8.
In making the arrest, Malaysian authorities had said the suspected syndicate had rented luxury condominiums around Kuala Lumpur as packing facilities for the vape cartridges and narcotics before they were distributed to the international market.
The syndicate is believed to have been active since March 2024.
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