Dubai: An Asian man has been arrested in a hotel with over 5 kilograms of crystal meth worth Dh740,000, Dubai Police said on Tuesday.

A tip-off about the man was received from a trusted source, and his hotel room was raided at 2.30pm on January 1, the Dubai Police Anti-Narcotics Department said.

The suspect's documents showed that he is a 30-year-old Asian national, who arrived in the UAE from an Asian country with the purpose of selling the drugs.

In two suitcases that he had, police found 5,788 grams of the drug hidden under a fibre lining that was added to the suitcases.

Another case

The first bag contained 2,882 grams while the second contained 2,906 grams of the narcotic.

Crystal meth, short for crystal methamphetamine, is also known as Shabu and crystal speed, and resembles glass in appearance. It's street value is Dh146,000 per kilogram. Earlier, police arrested two people who were attempting to sell heroin.

Police set a trap on December 19 at 9.40pm in Hor Al Anz after receiving a tip-off that an unemployed 24-year-old Asian man, identified as M.A.S,, was trying to sell drugs in the area.

A policeman called the suspect and said he wanted to buy some heroin, and agreed with him on a time and place, as well as the amount to be sold and the price.

A team from the Anti-Narcotics department arrived at the scene and saw the suspect with another 35-year-old unemployed Asian man, identified as A.S.M,, who turned out to be his accomplice. While the team watched, the first suspect brought a bag from a nearby house, and the second delivered it to the undercover policeman and collected the money.

Confession

The team then closed in on the suspects and arrested them, although the second suspect put up a fight and tried to escape.

They seized 63 capsules containing 642 grams of heroin.

The first suspect claimed that he had received the drugs from a person he does not know after a call from a drug dealer outside the country.

The second suspect also confessed that he was part of the operation.