Navy foils fuel smuggling attempts over past months<\/p>\n
MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi (JP): The Indonesian Navy has caught
\nthree tanker ships attempting to export fuel illegally over the
\npast three months, officials said.<\/p>\n
Commander of the Navy's Eastern Fleet Commodore Ari Haryono
\nsaid here on Monday that the first two large tanker ships
\nweighing a total of 2,000 tons each were apprehended in waters
\noff riot-torn Tual in Maluku in January. The other ship was
\ncaught in waters off Surabaya in the western part of East Java
\nearlier this month.<\/p>\n
The commodore said that the tankers carried a mixture of
\nkerosene and diesel oil.<\/p>\n
\"The ships were all heading for Pontianak, the capital of West
\nKalimantan, where they planned to move the fuel to foreign ships
\npretending to be fishing boats,\" Ari said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Achmad Sutjipto
\nreiterated that the Navy is intensifying its patrols in the north
\ncoastal areas as well as border areas such as the Malaka straits.<\/p>\n
\"It is impossible to watch all of our sea lanes but we will
\ntry our best to guard areas prone to smuggling,\" the admiral
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Achmad assured that none of the military was involved in the
\nstockpiling of mixed fuel through the country's seas.<\/p>\n
\"The Navy is not involved in any fuel swindling. That goes
\nfrom the whole operational organization to the cooperatives,\"
\nAchmad told media.<\/p>\n
\"But if there is any (Navy) member who commits such a
\nviolation, I guarantee a firm punishment for her or him,\" the
\nadmiral said.<\/p>\n
Separately in the Bali capital of Denpasar, local police
\narrested a man identified as I Gusti Ketut Surya Widana, 50, for
\nallegedly counterfeiting fuel coupons in a gasoline station.<\/p>\n
Capt. Lukas Gunawan, chief of Denpasar police subprecinct said
\nthe coupons were printed in Singaraja, about 120 kilometers north
\nof Denpasar.<\/p>\n
\"We are still hunting for another suspect,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Each coupon is worth a nominal value of Rp 10,000 or 10 liter
\nof gasoline. \"The suspect asked motorbike taxi ojek drivers to
\nhelp exchange the coupons for money,\" Lukas said.<\/p>\n
The gas station has reportedly suffered more than Rp 1.4
\nmillion in losses due to the distribution of false coupons.
\n(27\/zen\/edt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/navy-foils-fuel-smuggling-attempts-over-past-months-1447893297",
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