The Permata Housing Complex, Kampung Ambon, was like a ghost town. On Wednesday last week, before 10pm, not a single resident was outside. There was no sound of house music, a daily feature of life in the complex. It's quiet, boss. No one is open for business, said one man we met at a three-way intersection.

This fidgety man stood and drew nearer. If you want, I can look for some, but the goods must be taken outside (the complex), he said. We under