Customs seizes sex toys at Soekarno-Hatta Airport

Customs seizes sex toys at Soekarno-Hatta Airport

TANGERANG (JP): Customs and Excise officers at Soekarno-Hatta
International Airport have recently foiled a series of attempts
to smuggle sex toys and Viagra pills into the country, an
official said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a media conference, Heru Santoso, head of the
airport's Customs and Excise unit in Terminal II, said that over
the past seven days 280 male sex toys, scores of vibrators with a
combined weight of 12.7 kilograms, penis enlargers and plastic
novelty female breasts had been seized.

The goods, estimated to be worth Rp 4 billion (US$470,600),
had been shipped from Taiwan and the United States via courier
firms such as FedEx and DHL, Heru said.

So far, no one has been named as a suspect in the cases, but
Heru said his office with the help of related institutions was
still investigating them.

All of the items had no proper documentation, he said.

"The sex toys from Taiwan, for example, only have a price of
around Rp 84 million, but had no licenses from the health
ministry permitting them to enter the country," he said.

"The confiscated items from the States, including the
electronic penis enlargers, were mailed via DHL and the novelty
females breasts were sent via FedEx," said Heru.

The number of Viagra pills confiscated totaled 450.

"The pills can actually be legally imported to Indonesia with
the health ministry's consent," he said.

Another major find by the airport officers was a box
containing 574 pieces of protected coral reef that was being sent
to Canada, France and Taiwan via Eva Air flight number BR 238.

"The exporter, PT Cahaya Baru of Jl. Beo, Bintaro Permai
complex, South Jakarta, wrote in the shipment notice that the
package contained 6,000 decorative fishes," Heru said.

"We are coordinating with officials from the forestry ministry
for further investigation and analysis of this case," he added.

None of the export company's executives could be reached for
comment on Thursday.

Coral reefs are protected by Law No.5/1990 on the Conservation
of Natural Resources and Ecosystems. Trade in coral pieces is
also prohibited by the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Flora and Fauna (CITES).

Heru said his office would transfer all the confiscated items
to the Jakarta Police for further investigation. (41/nvn)