A LORRY driven by suspected drug traffickers smashed into a police car early yesterday morning after a dramatic high-speed chase along two expressways.
At one point, the driver of the lorry swung the vehicle into a U-turn and sped up a road against the flow of traffic - with police and anti-narcotics vehicles in pursuit.
The chase ended when the lorry driver and his passenger leapt from the moving vehicle, which crashed into a police car and mounted a kerb before stopping on a pavement at Rivervale Drive in Sengkang.
Police arrested the men near the scene after a struggle.
The car chase capped off a major operation by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) that involved surveillance activity and arrests across the country.
Nine suspects believed to have been running a drug ring are under arrest and narcotics with an estimated street value of $71,000 were seized. The haul comprised 177g of heroin, 36g of Ice, 319 Ecstasy tablets, 300 Erimin-5 tablets and 98 Subutex tablets.
The syndicate was allegedly headed by a 41-year-old unemployed Singaporean with drug and criminal records, including involvement with secret society activities.
The complex seven-hour operation began on Friday night when CNB officers, acting on a tip-off, spotted an associate of the alleged ringleader leaving an East Coast Road flat.
The 24-year-old jobless woman got into a Honda Civic at the junction of East Coast Road and Telok Kurau Road and alighted shortly thereafter, carrying a yellow plastic bag. She then spent a short time in the lorry and returned to the apartment, still with the yellow bag.
A short distance away, the lorry picked up the alleged ringleader. CNB officers tailed it to a carpark at Bedok North, where the man got out.
That was the signal for officers to move in and they arrested the alleged ringleader. A packet of Ice and one of heroin were found on him.
The man's girlfriend, who tested positive for drugs, was also nabbed at a nearby flat.
Meanwhile, the lorry had moved off and another group of CNB officers continued to trail it. They repeatedly signalled the driver to stop but he continued speeding along the Bukit Timah and Tampines expressways.
Traffic Police officers were roped in to stop the lorry but their repeated warnings were also ignored.
Police and CNB vehicles tried to box the lorry in in an attempt to slow it down, but the driver made a sharp illegal U-turn on the Tampines Expressway towards a slip road and sped on against the flow of traffic.
Police followed and turned on blinkers and sirens to warn oncoming vehicles.
The lorry slowed down at Rivervale Drive and the driver and passenger jumped out and fled in different directions. After a short chase both men were arrested, struggling violently. A passer-by also joined in the pursuit.
The driver was a 31-year-old man with drug and criminal records. The 34-year-old passenger had a packet of heroin. Another packet of heroin and seven Subutex tablets were found in the lorry.
As the chase was under way, other officers intercepted the Honda Civic and arrested the driver and his female passenger.
The East Coast Road flat was also raided and the woman seen with the yellow bag and two other women were arrested. An assortment of drugs was seized.
