Taipei, June 28 (CNA) A traveler from Malaysia was detained recently in Taoyuan on suspicion of smuggling marijuana into Taiwan, Keelung police said Thursday.

The 22-year-old man was arrested at a hotel in Taoyuan on May 20 after he was tracked there by Keelung police, who also detained five alleged accomplices in a drug smuggling and dealing operation, police said.

Police said the main suspect had smuggled two kilograms of marijuana, with a street value of NT$1.5 million (US$49,180), into Taiwan.

According to police, they found out through their analysis of customs data that the suspect was mailing packages of marijuana from Canada to himself, using fake names. In Taiwan, the suspect would check into various hotels in Taoyuan and in Banqiao District of New Taipei under fake names and would ask the unsuspecting receptionists to take delivery of his packages, police said.

Once the suspect had collected the marijuana, he would contact his ring of dealers via phone apps and distribute the drugs to them for sale, police said.

According to Keelung police, the suspect might have been trying this time to cash in on a musical festival scheduled for July in neighboring New Taipei.

The main suspect and the five others who were arrested have been handed over to Taoyuan prosecutors for further investigation, police said.

(By Wang Chao-yu and Flor Wang)
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