Eating poppy seed cake can land you in jail

KUALA LUMPUR: The public is cautioned against consuming cakes topped with or containing poppy seeds.

City Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department chief SAC Wan Abdullah Ishak said consumers if found positive for drugs, “even if they denied it”, could be charged in court.

“If they are subjected to a urine test and found positive for drugs, they will be detained.

“They can be charged under Section 15(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which carries a maximum two years’ jail or RM5,000 fine, for taking drugs,” he told reporters here.

According to him, police had detected cases where poppy seeds which are illegal to consume in Malaysia were added to cakes, allegedly to boost sales.

“Even possession of less than five gm of ganja from the poppy plant, is an offence under Section 6 of the DDA 1952, which carries a maximum five years’ jail and RM20,000 fine on conviction,” he warned.

He said police conducted drug screening on the poppy seeds found in suspected cakes and found them to be positive for morphine.

“We found that ‘Lemon poppy seed cakes’ were sold openly for RM13 a piece.

The buyer would feel a sense of ‘high’ or euphoria after consuming a large portion,” he warned.

Nevertheless, Wan Abdullah stressed it was too early for police to swoop down on the culprits, who are allegedly the suppliers and cake sellers, as investigations were still ongoing.

He said police would also carry out further tests at the Malaysian Chemistry Department to confirm that drugs were really present in such cakes.

Poppy seeds or ‘kas kas’ as they are known in Malaysia are believed to be widely used in food preparations in countries in Europe, the Middle East and India.

– BERNAMA

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