The Royal Customs Department in Malaysia began to introduce a new drug detection device from Sweden, Alpha Six, in stages on August 1. It can scan through building walls, vehicles, containers and the human body and will be placed at all 26 gateways eventually.
Deputy Director-General of Customs (Prevention) Abdul Rahman Abdul Hamid told Bernama news agency at a demonstration of the device at the Tanjung Puteri Customs Complex, that the department purchased the device from Sweden at a cost of RM36, 000 each.
Alpha Six is able to detect opium-linked drugs from poppy such as morphine and heroin and 14 types of synthetic stimulants, such as methamphetamine or syabu, amphetamine and ecstasy. It is not dependent on any battery or power source. Instead it operates on the energy of the person holding the device, he said. The device also detects drugs hidden inside the stomach of traffickers who often swallow tubes of drugs just before entering the country, Abdul Rahman Abdul Hamid added.
