Domestic demand for heroin 'increasing'<\/p>\n
TANGERANG (JP): Increasing domestic demand for heroin has
\nencouraged foreign drug dealers to smuggle the illegal narcotic
\ninto the country, Director General of Customs and Excise Permana
\nAgung said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Substantial quantities of the drug have been smuggled though
\nthe Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.<\/p>\n
Permana said, the customs officers at the airport would stay
\nalert for smugglers and monitor suspected drug dealers.<\/p>\n
\"Our officers will continue to work hard to fight the heroin
\nsmugglers. The arrest of four drug smugglers this month is proof
\nof our diligence,\" he told reporters.<\/p>\n
He said the large quantities of heroin coming into the country
\nwere a result of good harvests in the countries growing the
\npoppies and processing the drugs.<\/p>\n
He claimed the Customs and Excise office had anticipated the
\nincreased smuggling attempts, explaining that the smugglers
\nusually arrived from India and Pakistan via Singapore.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, activist Stefanus Ledo Buyeng of the National
\nChildren's Institute hailed the customs officers who have
\narrested drug smugglers and prevented huge amounts of heroin
\nworth billions of rupiah from entering the country.<\/p>\n
\"We might give an award to the officers because they have
\nsaved thousands of youths. We can not imagine if the heroin was
\nnot intercepted and consumed by our teenagers,\" Stefanus told
\nreporters.<\/p>\n
On Monday, the customs officers arrested Nigerian Hansen
\nAnthony Nwaolisa, 35, for trying to smuggle 800 grams of heroin
\nafter deplaning from Pakistan Airline plying Karachi-Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The officers also arrested South African Zwelbanzi Joseph
\nManana on Sunday for attempting to smuggle 1.2 kilograms of
\nheroin worth Rp 1.5 billion (US$157,894).<\/p>\n
Both Nwaolisa and Manana attempted to smuggle the drug by
\nswallowing capsules containing the heroin.<\/p>\n
The officers became suspicious of the men and took them to the
\nairport clinic for X-rays which confirmed the capsules in their
\nstomachs.<\/p>\n
A Nepalese, identified as Indra Bahadur Tamang, was arrested
\nat the airport last week for attempting to smuggle 900 grams of
\nheroin. The 21-year-old suspect was found swallowing capsules
\ncontaining the heroin.<\/p>\n
On another occasion, customs officers arrested Nigerian Samuel
\nIwuch Kwuokoje, 30, for attempting to smuggle 3.6 kilograms of
\nheroin hidden in a tombstone in his suitcase.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's narcotics Law No. 22\/1997 stipulates that drug
\ndealers or smugglers could face the death penalty or a life
\nsentence.<\/p>\n
Despite the harsh sentence, it is still quite easy for users
\nto buy the illicit drugs at places like cafes, discotheques or at
\nthe dealers' houses. (41\/jun)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/domestic-demand-for-heroin-increasing-1447893297",
"image": ""
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