The drugs were disposed of by blending them with carbolfuchsin and detergent.
The seized crystal meth was valued at about Rp160 billion, said Bangka Belitung Islands Police Chief, Inspector General Anang Syarif Hidayat, who witnessed the drug disposal in the backyard of the provincial police headquarters here.
The drug disposal was also witnessed by the Bangka Belitung Islands governor as well as several representatives of related agencies, including the public prosecutor's office, Indonesian Defence Forces (TNI), and National Narcotics Agency (BNNP).
The crystal meth, which was smuggled into the country by a trans-national syndicate, was seized after police were alerted by a freight logistics company in the Lontong Pancur neighborhood area of Pangkalpinang on July 21, 2020.
Workers at the inter-island cargo logistics company had grown suspicious after finding crystal meth packages in a consignment of 73 sandbags filled with corn seeds at the warehouse. The drugs had been placed at the bottom of the sandbags and then covered with corn seeds.
After they were alerted, police investigators found eight big bags of crystal meth, weighing 9.13 kilograms, concealed in several sandbags. This was followed by a coordinated drug raid and the seizure of another 200 kg of crystal meth, he said.
In relation to the drug case, director of Drug Crimes at the National Police's Criminal Investigation Department, Brig.Gen.Krisno H. Siregar, had said earlier that the drugs had been smuggled from Myanmar concealed in 423 sandbags filled with corn seeds.
He said the drugs were originally smuggled from Myanmar, but they were transported in a container from Malaysia to the Tanjung Priok port in North Jakarta through Pangkalpinang in Bangka Belitung Islands province and Batam Island, Riau Islands province.
A coordinated drug raid led to the 200-kilogram crystal meth haul and the arrests of four suspects, identified by their initials as SC, R alias S, A, and Y alias D, he remarked.
The lives of at least one million people in Indonesia could be saved following the haul of these drug packages, he stated, adding that the police have charged the suspects under Indonesia's drug law, under which, they are facing the death penalty or life imprisonment, and a fine of Rp10 billion.
The drug cases uncovered by the Indonesian police amid the COVID-19 pandemic are proof that the government is now simultaneously challenged by two deadly threats: drugs and disease.
This week, two suspected drug dealers were shot dead after they reportedly assaulted Surabaya city police officers while trying to resist arrest during a drug raid. Meanwhile, six other suspects were apprehended in the raid.
During the raid, 17.05 kg of crystal methamphetamine was also seized from the suspects, Surabaya City Police Chief, Sen.Coms. Jhonny Edison Isir, said on September 3, 2020. (INE)
Related news: Police arrest married couple over crystal meth trafficking charges
Related news: Police confirm 300 kg-crystal meth also for trade in Java
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Donatus DP, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
