The four men, aged between 59 and 62, were nabbed in George Town, Ayer Itam, and Bandar Baru.

Penang police chief Hamzah Ahmad was quoted by Utusan Malaysia as saying that their arrests led to the discovery of a drug lab and the seizure of methamphetamine and heroin worth about RM178,500.

He also said that one of the suspects, aged 59, is believed to be the leader of the syndicate. He was nabbed at a parking lot in George Town.

“Following the suspect’s arrest, police seized a packet of heroin weighing 115g, valued at RM920,” said Hamzah.

The suspect then led the police to a house in the same area where drugs suspected to be “heroin-based” were found in one of the rooms.

The drugs, placed in a clear plastic bag and wrapped in brown paper, weighed about 377g and were valued at RM32,500.

“We also found seven clear plastic packages suspected to contain heroin, weighing approximately 1,474g and valued at RM11,792, and five clear plastic packages suspected to contain methamphetamine weighing 4,099g and valued at RM132,000,” he said.

Another six clear plastic packages suspected to contain caffeine weighing approximately 3,474g and valued at RM1,200 were also found.

The police then arrested the three other men, aged 60 to 62, in Ayer Itam and Bandar Baru.

“Subsequent to these arrests, police seized two clear plastic packets suspected to contain heroin, weighing approximately 10.1g and valued at RM88,” Hamzah said, noting that the syndicate had been actively distributing drugs since early March.

Three of the suspects tested positive for morphine, while checks found that three of them also had criminal and drug-related records.

“All of the detainees have been remanded for seven days from July 13 to 19 for investigation,” Hamzah said, adding that the total amount of drugs seized was enough for 25,000 doses.

Police also confiscated two vehicles during the raids: a Chevrolet car valued at RM5,000 and a Honda Dash motorcycle valued at RM3,700.