The ministry’s director in Kelantan, Abd Ghani Harun, said the involvement of the petrol pump workers was detected following an operation in Tumpat last Thursday.
He said two men, both in their 30s, were detained in the operation conducted about midnight.
“Our investigations revealed that the two suspects were able to fill between 800 and 1,000 litres of petrol into a modified fuel tank of a Proton Saga with the help of workers at the petrol pump station,” he told a media conference here yesterday.
Abd Ghani said members of the smuggling syndicate would move from one petrol station to another to get their supply before crossing the border.
After crossing the border, the petrol was pumped out and sold on a per kilogramme basis, he added.