The provincial police seized 469.5 kg of crystal methamphetamine, 1,579 kg of marijuana, and 138 thousand ecstasy pills in raids conducted between early January to mid-December, 2020, and arrested 2,144 drug offenders in connection with 1,025 cases, Aceh Police chief, Insp.Gen.Wahyu Widada, revealed here on Wednesday.
"The huge amount of crystal meth packages the police have seized reveal that many drug lords operate in Aceh," he said.
The Aceh police would continue to crack down on drug lords, dealers, and couriers, he said, adding that many of the seized crystal meth packages were meant to be sold in other provinces.
Besides successfully thwarting attempts to smuggle or trade crystal meth, marijuana, and ecstasy pills in drug operations this year, Aceh police also destroyed 83.3 hectares of cultivated cannabis, he said.
"This evidently shows that drug trafficking remains a serious threat to our people here, particularly members of our young generation. If the drug crimes fail to be uncovered, thousands of people may fall victim to drug addiction," he added.
Aceh is among the Indonesian provinces which remain vulnerable to drug crimes.
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On December 3, 2020, the Idi District Court in East Aceh sentenced M. Kasem bin Abdullah, 35, to death after finding him guilty of smuggling 45 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine from Malaysia into Indonesia in April, 2020.
The court's judiciary panel, headed by Irwandi, also sentenced Basri bin Rusli (32), Aji bin Abdullah (45), and Teja Saputra bin Edi Junaidi (23) to life imprisonment, and Junaidi bin Aji (23) to 20 years jail in connection with the drug-trafficking case.
The judiciary panel also imposed a fine of Rp1 billion on Junaidi bin Aji in a verdict that was close to the sentences sought by the prosecution.
Domestic and transnational drug dealers view Indonesia as a potential market owing to its vast population and millions of drug users. Drug trade in the nation is valued at nearly Rp66 trillion.
People from all sections of society are falling prey to drugs, regardless of their socio-economic and professional backgrounds.
The Indonesian government has taken harsh punitive action against drug kingpins found smuggling and trading drugs in the country over the past few decades.
While National Narcotics Agency (BNN) chief, Commissioner General Heru Winarko, has sought capital punishment for those involved in drug trade in the country, National Police chief, General Idham Azis, has said Indonesian district courts have awarded capital punishment to at least 100 drug offenders in the first half of this year. (INE)
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Translator: M.Haris SA, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
