11/11/2011 (The Star) - Palm oil theft by syndicates is causing plantation owners to lose RM325mil every year.

Federal CID deputy director Deputy Comm Datuk Hadi Ho Abdullah said that due to the huge losses, the police had launched “Ops Pemutihan Sawit” in August 2009 with the cooperation of the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB).

He said that since then, 49 sites were identified nationwide as “transit points” to store the stolen commodity before it was distributed to buyers.

“We have raided 31 of the premises and nabbed the culprits.

“We are observing the remaining sites before moving in,” he said.

He also said 25 new premises where the syndicates operated had been identified, mostly in Johor and Sarawak,.

“Clamping down on such thefts is one of our main priorities as it could affect the image of the country and investor confidence,” he said after launching the second anti-palm oil theft operation at a hotel here yesterday.

DCP Hadi said 76 cases had been reported since 2009 with 67 taken to court and the rest still under investigation.

“Their modus operandi is to divert the tanker carrying palm oil from the plantation to a designated spot before moving the commodity to another tanker,” he said, adding that police believed that syndicate members were getting inside help.

It is learnt that part of the stolen palm oil would be sold in the country and the rest smuggled to other countries where they fetched a higher price.

DCP Hadi said the Government was looking at amending the laws so that MPOB officers would be empowered to investigate palm oil thefts and make arrests.

“MPOB is planning to install GPS in its tankers to keep track of the transportation process en route to the processing factories,” he said.