The 39-year-old Malaysian national was also allegedly under the influence of narcotics while on duty, Eko Hadi Santoso, director of narcotics crimes at the National Police Criminal Investigation Agency, told the Associated Press.
The drugs were discovered by customs officers at the arrivals terminal at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Jakarta, Indonesia, after they noticed a suspicious suitcase during an X-ray screening, Global News reported.
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The luggage was later collected by the suspect, whom police identified as a pilot for Malaysian Airlines on flight MH727 from Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta, Santoso said, adding that the pilot and the suitcase were escorted to a separate area for further examination.
Police said they found 14 packages containing 70,114 ecstasy pills, weighing about 26 kg (57 pounds), along with a separate stash of methamphetamine.
Police narcotics investigators took over the case.
“He has been named a suspect and detained,” Santoso said during a news conference at the airport on Friday where police had put the seized drugs on display.
“Investigators are still conducting further inquiries to develop the network above him,” he said.
Officers also seized a small bottle of urine that investigators allege was prepared to falsify drug test results if needed during the inspection process, airport authorities said in an Instagram post.
