The suspects, identified by their initials as KAS (37), P (43), and LA (36) were apprehended in two drug-raid operations, Adjunct Sen.Coms. MP Nainggolan said.
KAS and LA were nabbed with five kg of crystal methamphetamine packed in a Chinese tea plastic bag after cops stopped their black CR-V van on Sudirman Street in Kota Pinang subdistrict of Labuhan Batu Selatan district, he informed.
LA is a female civil servant, Nainggolan said, adding that another suspect, identified as P, was apprehended in Suka Maju village, Bagan Sinembah subdistrict, Rokan Hilir district, Riau province.
"These three suspects remain under the North Sumatra police custody for further investigation," he said.
North Sumatra and Riau are among the Indonesian provinces which remain vulnerable to drug crimes.
On November 18, 2020, director of the National Police’s Narcotics Directorate, Brig.Gen.Krisno Halomoan Siregar, disclosed that several drug packages, which were seized at the Bakauheni Ferry Port in Lampung province between October 27 and November 17, 2020, were transported from several cities in Sumatra Island, including Medan.
Indonesia remains under grave threat from drug dealers, who consider the country a potential market. The value of drug trade in Indonesia is estimated to be at least Rp66 trillion.
Users of crystal methamphetamine, narcotics, marijuana, and other types of addictive drugs transcend communities and socio-economic and cultural 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.
According to National Police chief, General Idham Azis, district courts in different parts of Indonesia have awarded capital punishment to at least 100 drug offenders in the first half of this year.
"May they soon be executed by firing squads to deter others," he said while witnessing the National Police special task force destroy 1.2 tons of crystal meth, 35 thousand ecstasy pills, and 410 kg of marijuana in Jakarta on July 2, 2020.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has also issued shoot-at-sight orders against drug kingpins.
However, this has failed to deter drug traffickers, who have continued to treat Indonesia as one of their main markets, prompting Indonesian law enforcers to tighten vigilance against them. (INE)
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EDITED BY INE
Translator: Nur ABS, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
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