A judiciary panel at the West Jakarta District Court also found Yoyo Hartono, Nisin, Hendra, Mulyadi, Agus Salim, Johan, Aan Bachtiar, Hendrik, and Zupril Rabsi guilty of smuggling 49,238 ecstasy pills.
The verdict of the panel of judges, headed by Judge Ni Made Sudani, was lighter than the death sentence demanded by the prosecutors.
Yerich, one of the prosecutors, confirmed that they will file an appeal to challenge the verdict since they strongly believe that the convicts should be awarded death penalty by taking into account their evidence of crimes.
This drug case was unearthed by the Jakarta Metropolitan Police's narcotics unit after its personnel raided an apartment in West Jakarta in December 2018.
The convicts admitted to having planned to sell the crystal meth and ecstasy pills, smuggled from Malaysia into Indonesia, at the 2019 New Year's Eve.
Indonesia remains under grave threat from drug dealers, as several individuals from its working-age population have been trapped in a vicious circle.
The National Narcotics Agency's (BNN's) report that some 50 Indonesians die daily of drug use has failed to deter drug users in the country from consuming these banned substances.
Users of crystal methamphetamine, narcotics, marijuana, and other addictive drugs are from across communities and distinct socio-economic and cultural backgrounds.
Hence, Indonesia is perceived by both domestic and transnational drug dealers as a potential market due to its huge population and millions of drug users. The value of drug trade in the country is estimated to have reached nearly Rp66 trillion.
In response to the illicit drugs that drug kingpins have smuggled into and traded in the country over the past few decades, the Indonesian government continues to apply harsh punitive action against them.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo had also issued shoot-at-sight orders against drug kingpins.
However, drug traffickers appear to be unaffected by this move and continue to treat Indonesia as one of their main markets even as Indonesian law enforcers continue the fight against them. Related news: Narcotics agency destroys meth smuggled from Malaysia
Related news: Malaysian citizen gets death sentence for smuggling narcotic drugs
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Devi NSR, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
