Crime | Man apprehended for manufacturing, consuming cocaine

A Tanzanian man has been arrested for allegedly “illegally manufacturing and consuming [a] psychiatric and anesthetic substance,” the Judiciary Police (PJ) announced in a special press conference yesterday morning.

The PJ obtained clues related to the case in the form of criminal intelligence.

According to the police, the man entered Macau on a tourist visa in 2020 and had been staying in the city since then. Although he had since pleaded guilty for a crime, his appeal was upheld. Following this, he had been allowed to stay in Macau with a temporary permit.

The male suspect, named Yusufu, 29 years old and reportedly unemployed, was caught on the night of February 12 when leaving the inn at which he was staying. The inn is located in the city’s Central District.

The suspect was on his way to a taxi when PJ inspectors intercepted him. He was then taken to his room at the inn for the room to be searched and any contraband seized.

In the room, inspectors discovered and seized a block of cocaine weighing 5.68 grams, a package of liquid cocaine weighing 26.02 grams and equipment for the manufacture of illicit substances. The substances were valued at around MOP260,000.

Cash in patacas, as well as in Hong Kong and US dollars, was also found in the room, to a total value of about MOP63,400.

Despite his arrest, the PJ said that the suspect declined to reveal certain details which the police did not disclose. However, he did admit to consumption of illicit substances.

He also said that he purchased the substance in liquid form from an African man. He then processed it into powdered form in his room at the inn for resale. He had done this for the past three months, but had only stayed at the inn for a month or so.

The PJ noted that this type of one-stop operation for the manufacture and sale of illicit substances is rare in Macau.