Speaking at a news conference at the Directorate General of Customs and Excise headquarters in Jakarta, Sahid Junaidi, secretary of the ministry's enforcement division, emphasized that investigators will target the financial backers behind these illicit operations as well as audit mining permits.
“We at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources understand that mining is capital-intensive. Therefore, in our law enforcement efforts, we will look deeply into the financiers,” Sahid said.
Officials stated that individuals or entities found receiving, transporting, processing, or selling unpermitted minerals will face criminal penalties under Article 161 of the 2020 Mining Law.
Beyond tracking supply lines and funding, authorities plan to scrutinize the legitimacy of mining operations and processing permits across the country.
“We will link it to the mining operations and their processing permits. So, our focus is on the legality of the mining business permits,” Sahid added.
The enforcement push follows Customs and Excise officers at Soekarno-Hatta Airport intercepting an unmanifested export attempt involving 22.3 kilograms of gold cast bars at Terminal 3.
Earlier this month, on Aug. 10–11, airport customs and aviation security officers foiled two separate smuggling attempts involving nearly 23.8 kilograms of gold valued at approximately 63 billion rupiah ($3.5 million).
Between January and August 2026, Indonesian customs authorities have disrupted 32 illegal gold export attempts with a total estimated market value of 846.94 billion rupiah (approx. $47 million).
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Translator: Imamatul Silfia, Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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