Tangerang, Banten
(Antara Bali) - The customs service of Jakartas Soekarno-Hatta Airport
will increase screening of passengers arriving from China and Malaysia
following a surge in the number of narcotics smuggling cases through the
airport.
Head of Customs Service Okto Irianto stated here on Tuesday that
flights from the two countries will be given special attention by
customs officials because of an increase in the number of attempts made
to smuggle narcotics by passengers from the two countries.
"Every passenger arriving on flights from Malaysia and China will
be given special attention by customs officers because many passengers
from there have so far been caught carrying narcotics," he pointed out.
The nationalities of those caught trying to smuggle narcotics may
be Malaysian, Chinese, or others, but mostly they came to Jakarta
through the two countries, Irianto added.
Okto explained that many dealers used couriers from various
countries who then boarded flights from the two countries to Jakarta.
The offenders also used various methods to smuggle the illegal
stuff, such as by concealing it in their luggage, pasting it on their
bodies, or even swallowing it.
Okto emphasized that the customs service is also cooperating with the intelligence service to detect suspected passengers.
By studying the track record of the passengers, customs officers
then conducted an intensive check on those being suspected, he added.
"We usually use intelligence data to know their track record
before catching the suspects. It will be difficult to catch them if we
only rely on X-ray scanners because the number of passengers being
checked is huge," Okto stated.
As per the airport customs service data for the period between
January and May, this year, a total of 31 national and 21 foreign
citizens from China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Nigeria,
Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda have been caught as narcotics smuggling
suspects.
The number of cases during the period reached 34, involving 41.6
kilograms of methamphetamine and ketamine and 20 tablets of happy five
ecstasy pills worth more than Rp54 billion.
Deputy Chief of the Airport Narcotics Police Unit Adjunct
Commissioner Wempy meanwhile stressed that the police had cooperated
with the customs service before seizing the suspects.
Wempy remarked that his unit had also chased suspects who used
courier service to send narcotics to various regions in the country.
"Some suspects have been caught on site while others after investigations into the case," he pointed out. (WDY)
Screening of Passengers From Malaysia, China Increased Over Narcotics Smuggling
Rabu, 28 Mei 2014 8:14 WIB
