Customs: East Coast of Sumatra Remains Main Route for International Narcotics Smuggling
From where these items enter, we reiterate that the East Coast of Sumatra remains the main entry route for narcotics from abroad. The primary drug is methamphetamine (meth), which on average still enters mainly through the East Coast of Sumatra, said Syarif Hidayat, Director of Narcotics Interdiction at the Directorate General of Customs and Excise, at a press conference at the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) offices, Cawang, East Jakarta, on Tuesday, 19 May 2026.
In addition, Syarif explained that drug shipments into Indonesia also frequently use air routes and shipments of goods. Customs noted up to May 2026 there were 341 cases of smuggling via air, 159 cases via parcels or shipments, 79 cases via land routes, and 36 cases via sea.
“So indeed the entry routes for narcotics are through land, through sea, carried by the individual, and also via shipments. And regarding the sources, narcotics other than cannabis still come from abroad, while cannabis is mainly from Aceh,” he explained.
Furthermore, Customs also noted that it had uncovered 615 narcotics cases as of 17 May 2026. Of the total cases handled, they managed to prevent circulation of around 3.4 tonnes of narcotics as a result of cooperation with BNN and the Criminal Investigation Agency of the Indonesian Police (Bareskrim Polri).
“As of 17 May, we have uncovered around 615 narcotics cases, quite large, with total goods we managed to prevent together with other law enforcement colleagues amounting to 3.4 tonnes,” he added.
Syarif also highlighted ‘rat lines’ along border areas. According to him, those routes are still difficult to detect.
“What is meant by ‘rat lines’ is certainly the land border, primarily from Kalimantan between Indonesia and Malaysia and also Timor Leste and at the border of Papua, Indonesia with Papua New Guinea,” he added.
“We can say that narcotics come not only from the East Coast of Sumatra, but also quite a lot from the borders with Sabah and Sarawak. Indeed we have obtained a considerable number of narcotics there,” he continued.
Syarif explained there are major challenges in monitoring rat routes. One of them is the length of the border, which is only marked by markers. He gave the example of the Indonesia-Malaysia border, which is about 2,019 kilometres long.
“The length of the Indonesia-Malaysia border is around 2,019 km and it is not bounded by fences, sir. Not, sir. Nor a wall. It is just markers, and markers,” he said.