Tanjung Balai City Police Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Irfan Rifai informed Antara in Tanjung Balai City on Sunday that police investigators seized the crystal methamphetamine that this 42-year-old Malaysian citizen had attempted to smuggle.
The suspect concealed a plastic pack of crystal meth, or popularly known as Sabu-Sabu, inside his right shoe, while two others were concealed in his anus. The investigators were able to retrieve the two remaining packs from NZ`s body, he revealed.
In addition to the crystal meth, the police officers confiscated other evidence of crime from the suspect, including two cellular phones, Rp400 thousand in cash, and a pair of shoes, Rifai revealed.
NZ entered Indonesia by boarding a ferry vessel from Malaysia, which arrived at the Teluk Nibung Port in Tanjung Balai City, North Sumatra Province, on Saturday (Mar 9) at around 4:30 p.m. local time.
The port`s Customs and Excise authorities detected the crystal meth packages that the suspect had carried through their X-ray machine.
"According to his ID, the suspect resides in Bandar Baru Sentul, Kuala Lumpur," Rifai noted.
In uncovering the case, the Tanjung Balai police investigators then coordinated with their colleagues in Medan, North Sumatra Province`s capital city, to hunt down another suspect, an Indonesian citizen.
The Medan city police investigators succeeded in apprehending a suspect only identified as P, 22, residing on Yusuf Jintan Street of Cinta Damai Village, Percut Sei Tuan Sub-district, Deli Serdang District, North Sumatra Province, on early Sunday.
"The two suspects are currently in the Tanjung Balai police`s custody for legal process," he remarked.
Indonesia is indeed perceived by both local and transnational drug dealers as their potential market due to its huge population and millions of drug users.
The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) noted that some 50 Indonesians die of illicit drugs every day, while the total number of drug users in the country has reached seven million.
The value of drug trade in the country is estimated to have reached at least Rp66 trillion.
Reporting by Munawar Mandailing/Yan Aswika, Rahmad Nasution
Reporter: Antara
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
