Police have not ruled out the possibility that a new designer drug which took the lives of six people at Future Music Festival Asia last week could have been brought in by foreigners.
Datuk Noor Rashid Ibrahim, the director commissioner of Federal Narcotics Crime Investigation Department said the drugs could have originated from the Golden Triangle — an infamous drug manufacturing hub that cuts across Vietnam to Cambodia.
Noor Rashid said, based on studies done by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), a new drug is designed every two weeks.
“We suspect the new drugs were manufactured abroad and brought here for the concert by foreign revellers who then distributed them to others,” he said. “The symptoms of the victims showed a similar effect to those who consume methamphetamine or Ecstasy.”
Initial blood tests revealed the six had taken a large amount of illegal substances, resulting in overdose.
Noor Rashid said they will be able to identify the origin of the drugs once the toxicology and chemist reports are revealed.
Apart from the 6 deaths, 14 attendees were hospitalised last weekend, but two have since been discharged.
Cheras police district chief Mohan Singh said a Singaporean and Taiwanese have been discharged from Kuala Lumpur Hospital and University Malaya Medical Centre, respectively.
“Another 12 are still being warded at the hospitals. Eight are from Singapore and one each from Myanmar, Iran, the Philippines and Malaysia,” he said in a statement yesterday.
“All of the victims are in stable condition.”
The statement also said 14 Malaysians and 15 foreigners were arrested for drug abuse during the festival. Of the 29, one was charged, one released, 10 released on bail while the other 17 were remanded for further investigation.
Among the performers at the festival before it was called off were Will Sparks, Deadmau5, Paul van Dyk and Armin van Buuren.
