Customs deputy director-general (Enforcement and Compliance) Zulkifli Yahya said all cases involved four Indian nationals, who had boarded their flights from Chennai.

He said all the suspects who entered as tourists also used similar modus operandi by putting the drug packets in carry-on luggage.

“However, the investigation found that the three cases are not connected,” he told a press conference yesterday.

Zulkifli said in the first case, on Oct 20, a 53-year-old Indian national was detained at KLIA after an inspection on his two luggage found 5kg of methamphetamine drugs worth RM350,000.

In the second case, a 23-year-old man was detained at 5.20am on Nov 2 as he arrived at klia2 and after an inspection on one of his luggage, the police found 8.4kg of drugs worth RM588,000 hidden in 35 small bags, he said.

He added that the third case involved 14.05kg of methamphetamine worth RM983,500 and two suspects, aged 43 and 52, were also detained during the inspection carried out at the passenger checkpoints at the KLIA at 7.40 am on Sunday.

All the cases are being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 that carries the mandatory death sentence, upon conviction.