KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian authorities detained 51 men in a series of raids on Sunday (May 24) in connection with what police described as a drug-fuelled “gay party” held at a Kuala Lumpur hotel.

Homosexuality is criminalised in Muslim-majority Malaysia, which operates a dual-track legal system with Islamic laws for Muslims running alongside civil laws.

Sodomy is a crime, while Syariah laws are also in place that ban same-sex acts and cross-dressing.

Police arrested the men – aged between 21 and 52, and including 28 foreigners – in four separate raids, narcotics investigations department director Hussein Omar Khan said in a statement late on Monday.

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Authorities also seized about RM103,070 (US$26,000) worth of illicit drugs, including MDMA, ecstasy pills and powder, and ketamine, he said.

“This group was found to be using rooms in upscale hotels for entertainment, drug abuse, and is believed to be involved in immoral activities,” he said, adding that the case was being investigated under the Dangerous Drugs Act.

Prior to the raids, one man suspected of being at the party was found unconscious in the lobby of the hotel. He was rushed to Kuala Lumpur Hospital and pronounced dead upon arrival, Hussein said. He did not provide details about the cause of death.

Those detained have been remanded for three to six days as investigations continue, he said, adding that thirty-six of the men tested positive for drugs. 

It is unclear whether the arrests are linked or include the eight men nabbed in a raid at a Kuala Lumpur hotel on Sunday, where two Singaporeans were among those arrested, local media reported. 

Rights groups have warned that LGBT people in Malaysia have come under increasing scrutiny, and face growing intolerance. 

Last year, Kuala Lumpur police said they would review procedures after 171 people detained on suspicion of same-sex activities following a raid were released without charge after no evidence was found to prosecute them. 

LGBT advocacy groups had accused police of holding some of the detainees unlawfully for nearly two days even after a court had ordered their release.