Sarno, 51, said his wife rarely sent money home while working overseas and that he believed she was employed as a domestic worker.
“I only knew she was a migrant worker, a housemaid. I had no idea about drugs. All I can do now is surrender to the process,” Sarno told reporters here Wednesday.
Astutik, also known as Paryatin, was detained by Cambodian police and deported to Indonesia, where she is now being questioned by narcotics investigators.
Her arrest is the latest step in efforts to dismantle an international drug network linked to the May 26, 2025 methamphetamine seizure off the coast of Riau, near Batam, one of Indonesia’s largest maritime busts this year.
Investigators found she had used her younger sister’s identity while abroad, allegedly to avoid detection during travel across several countries.
Officials said such methods are commonly used by traffickers to bypass immigration and surveillance systems.
Astutik is registered as a resident of Sumber Agung Hamlet in Balong Subdistrict, Ponorogo, East Java.
BNN said earlier that her arrest aligns with its broader crackdown on regional trafficking syndicates that ship narcotics from the Golden Triangle through Southeast Asian transit hubs.
Information from Cambodia is expected to help identify further suspects and routes.
Astutik, described by BNN as an Interpol fugitive and a member of the Fredy Pratama network, was tracked after a Soekarno-Hatta Customs probe uncovered 2.3 kilograms of heroin.
BNN chief Comr. Gen. Suyudi Ario Seto said she had been recruited by Asian and African syndicates and is also wanted by South Korea.
He said Cambodian police detained her without resistance in a Sihanoukville hotel before transferring her to Phnom Penh for identity checks ahead of repatriation.
Related news: Interpol fugitive Dewi Astutik arrested in Cambodia drug raid: BNN
Translator: Destyan HS, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: M Razi Rahman
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
