PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian couple arrested with 5kg of cocaine at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Oct 10 is believed to have invited three friends to act as drug mules while on holiday in Japan.
Bukit Aman criminal investigation department director Hussein Omar Khan said police believe that all five were aware that they were carrying drugs.
Hussein said they were each given a pair of shoes filled with drugs by a syndicate.
“The Sarawakian couple flew to KLIA before heading to Tokyo. They were paid RM8,000 each to act as drug mules and bring the shoes into Japan,” Utusan Malaysia quoted him as saying at the Johor police headquarters today.
He said the five engaged a Kuala Lumpur tour agent, who was unaware of the drugs, to arrange their flights to Tokyo.
“Checks found that none of them had criminal records. We are still investigating whether they have acted as drug mules in other countries before,” he said.
Hussein advised Malaysians to be cautious about offers to travel overseas.
"The public must also ensure their belongings are not used by syndicates to smuggle drugs," he said.
Fuji News Network previously reported that the five Malaysians were arrested at Haneda Airport after attempting to smuggle about 5kg of cocaine worth 120 million yen (RM3.1 million) concealed beneath their shoe insoles.
Each suspect allegedly carried about 1kg of cocaine, with 500g concealed beneath the insole of each shoe.
The five had taken possession of the drugs at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the report said.