
Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang
Authorities at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport destroyed drugs allegedly worth more than Rp 118 billion on Thursday.
Airport Excise and Customs chief Rahmat Subagio said the drugs were found in plane passengers luggages and delivery packages between February 20 and May 13.
He said the drugs consisted of 485,40 grams of cocaine, 22,020,16 grams of shabu-shabu ( crystal methamphetamine) which was confiscated by customs officers in eight smuggling attempts from Hong Kong into the country.
“We have handed down 10 of 16 suspects in the smuggling cases to the police for further legal process,” he said.
The common modus used by the smugglers in their attempts to smuggle the drugs was that they wrapped the drug in aluminium foil bags and food containers before putting them in their luggages and water filter tubes.
Officers also destroyed 8,387 ectasy pills seized from ten drug delivery cases through the cargo warehouse packages between Jan 14 and May 5.
However, we are still investigating some aspects of the cases in cooperation with the National Narchotics Body to disclose the wider networks of the international drug syndicates,” he said.
The drug smuggling suspects arrested at the airport consisted of eight Taiwanese, Three Malaysians, two Thai Women, an Englishman and two Indonesians.
The ectasy pills were seized from ten domestic delivery packages through airport cargo warehouse but none of suspects was arrested in this cases as further investigation into the cases were handed over the police in the respective destination.
“The packages were reported as containing food and handicrafts were to be sent to several cities such as Pontianak , Banjarmasin , Balik Papan in Kalimantan , Sidoarjo in Eat Java, Jambi, and Tebing Tinggi in North Sumatra ,” he said.
He said drug smuggling attempts could be foiled at the airport with the assistance of the Airport Interdiction Task Force, which is made up of the police, customs, PT Angkasa Pura II security staff, Immigration and airport administration.
Present during the destruction were Banten governor Ratu Atut Chosiah, Banten Provincial Customs and Excise chief Bachtiar, Secretary General of Granat Ahshar Suryobroto, Banten Ganat executive board board chairman singer Benny Panjaitan, Banten Narchotics Body chief HM. Masduki, Airport executive general manager Haryanto, Tangerang’s head prosecutors Agus Sutoto, and airport police chief Sr. Comr. Guntur Setyanto.
Governor Ratu Atut Chosiah said that drug smuggling attempts had threatened the stability of national security, economy and the society health.
“We have to make a synergy in efforts to fight drugs smuggling attempts into the country and drug abuse and I am ready to work hand in hand in order that we can eradicate drug abuses,” she said.
She said efforts to fight drug abuses could start from home, neighbourhood unit, community unit, subdistrict, district in order to give a detterrent effect against drug smuggling and drug abuses.
Meanwhile, airport police chief Sr. Comr. Guntur Setyanto said he noticed that drugs smuggling attempt through the airport began to increase since December.
“Drug syndicate utilize our weaknesses to take opportunity to smuggle drugs into the country and therefore I call on all of us to collaborate because drugs has become the nations’ problems,” he said.
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