The suspects were identified by their initials AB (16), DB (13), GN (14), and SJ (16) while the drug dealer was Dogler. The latter asked them to place the drug packets at certain places, including flowerpots and polesDenpasar, Bali (ANTARA) - A drug dealer in the Indonesian resort island of Bali recruited four teenagers to work as his couriers, Denpasar Police Chief Sen. Coms. Ruddi Setiawan said here Wednesday.
The suspects were identified by their initials AB (16), DB (13), GN (14), and SJ (16) while the drug dealer was Dogler. The latter asked them to place the drug packets at certain places, including flowerpots and poles, he said.
The packets would then be picked up by the buyers from the designated places, he said, adding that these young couriers were apprehended on January 6, 2020 at 11.30 p.m. local time.
The arrest was conducted after police investigators received tip-offs from the residents of Tukad Unda Street in Denpasar Selatan neighborhood area, he said.
The raid also resulted in the seizure of ten small plastic bags containing 2.17 grams of crystal methamphetamine and 78 ecstasy pills, Setiawan said.
The suspects told the police investigators that the drug packs belong to Dogler. He promised to pay them Rp100 thousand for distributing the drug to the targeted spots.
Meanwhile, the local police also nabbed seven other drug couriers in other places in Denpasar city. One of the suspects was identified as Harmanto (33) who had in his possession 115 plastic bags containing 81.61 grams of crystal meth and eight plastic bags of 750 ecstasy pills.
Another suspect named Narayana (23) concealed a plastic bag containing 99.23 grams of crystal meth, and 11 silver plastic bags with 700 ecstasy pills inside, he said.
In July 2019, the South Kalimantan Police's Anti-Drug Department revealed that a local drug ring also used a 15-year-old teenager as a courier following the arrest of a suspect only identified by his initials RD.
"The suspect is 15 years old. He was nabbed along with another suspect, MP (39) while selling 5.1 grams of crystal meth," the South Kalimantan Police's anti-drug squad member, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Sigit Kumoro, said.
He was very concerned with RD's case because he was could be recruited by drug dealers as a courier after becoming a regular drug user, Kumoro said. By working as a drug courier, he could also get the drugs to meet his need.
Indonesia's children and teenagers need to be protected from drug dealers and need to be educated about the danger of drugs, he added.
Cross-border drug traffickers continue to target South Kalimantan, the local police recently revealed while thwarting an attempt by a Malaysian drug ring to trade 10,078 ecstasy pills and 1,036 grams of crystal meth in the province.
Indonesia remains under a serious 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 of drug use every day has not yet deterred 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 from distinct socio-economic and cultural backgrounds.
Therefore, 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 the drug trade in the country is estimated to have reached nearly Rp66 trillion. (INE)
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Translator: Ayu KP, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
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