The amount of the seized drug was recorded as "the biggest" in the past two months of this year, Sukabumi Police Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner SY Zainal Abidin said in a statement that ANTARA quoted here Wednesday.
The crystal meth package could be seized following an arrest of HR and IK in Lembursitu Sub-district, he said without mentioning the day the local cops launched their crackdown on them.
However, the Sukabumi city police's anti-drug squad personnel could just confiscate 4.5 grams of crystal meth from them but their confession had led the cops to the arrest of DJ, he said.
During a raid at the house of DJ, a recidivist who had repeatedly got involved in drug cases, the police officers found some three kg of crystal meth and some 5,683 pills the suspect hid in a chicken cage, Abidin said.
According to DJ, the drug packages belong to HR, he said, adding that the police investigators still probe the case that may involve an inter-provincial drug ring.
Abidin said that throughout February 2022, the local cops had arrested 12 suspected drug offenders in a string of raids in seven sub-districts of Sukabumi City.
The arrests of 12 suspects had resulted in the confiscation of 3.1 kg of crystal meth, as well as 4,088 Hexymer pills, 369 Tramadol pills, 560 Dextro pills, 650 Trihex pills, and six Riklona pills, he said.
The police investigators have charged the suspects under Articles 111 (1), 112 (1 and 2), and 114 (1 and 2) of the Narcotics Law. If found guilty, they could face a 12-year sentence or life imprisonment.
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Domestic and transnational drug dealers view Indonesia as a potential market owing to its huge population and millions of drug users.
Drug trade in the nation is valued at nearly Rp66 trillion.
People from all strata of society are falling prey to drugs in the country regardless of their socio-economic and professional backgrounds.
Over the past few decades, the Indonesian government has taken harsh punitive action against drug barons found smuggling and trading drugs in the country.
The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) has sought capital punishment for those involved in drug trade in the country.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has also issued shoot-at-sight orders against drug kingpins.
However, this has failed to deter drug traffickers, who continue to treat Indonesia as a main market, prompting Indonesian law enforcers to step up vigilance against them.
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Translator: Aditia AR, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2022
