Customs director-general Khazali Ahmad however stressed that no one, including holders of diplomatic passports, were allowed to bring banned items into the country.
He said this amid reports confirming North Korean Kim Jong Nam was killed by the deadly nerve agent at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2).
He also told FMT, individuals who wished to bring banned items past entry points were required to declare the items.
“We don’t allow any banned item to be brought in regardless of whether that someone is a diplomat or not. They must declare the item.”
Earlier today, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar revealed that Jong Nam – the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un – was killed by the VX nerve agent.
Khazali said the tasteless and odourless chemical nerve agent was banned in Malaysia and listed as a chemical weapon under Schedule 1 of the Chemical Weapons Convention Act Malaysia 2005 and the Chemical Weapons Convention 1997.
He added that the department could not check every person who arrived at every airport in the country.
“We perform checks based on customs declarations as well as randomly. We can’t check everyone in the airport.
“We also have a risk management system. Sometimes we scan every person on one flight and for some flights, we check a selected few,” he said, adding that customs officers on the ground monitored and identified risks.
Jong Nam arrived in Malaysia on Feb 6, and was due to depart for Macau on Feb 13. He was at klia2 to catch a 10.30am flight when he was attacked by two women.
One used a rapid-acting poison on him while the other covered his face with a piece of cloth. He sought help at the customer service counter and was treated at the airport clinic but died on the way to Putrajaya Hospital.
The incident has since triggered a diplomatic crisis between Malaysia and North Korea, after Pyongyang objected to the autopsy and accused Malaysia of conspiring with “hostile forces”.