Etomidate raw material enters Indonesia via shipment from China

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Head of the Narcotics Criminal Investigation Unit of the North Jakarta Metropolitan Police Resort, AKBP Ari Galang Saputro, stated that the raw material for the narcotic etomidate entered Indonesia via an express shipment service from China, ordered by a Chinese national with the initials CH (51).

“Based on the investigation, the etomidate raw material was sent to Indonesia through an express delivery service from China,” said Ari in Jakarta on Thursday.

The raw material was then packaged using turmeric powder or ground turmeric and dhania powder kitchen spice packaging for camouflage, allowing it to evade detection by officials.

The suspect CH (51), who has been detained, acted as the mixer and producer of etomidate inside his apartment room. The suspect immediately produced the drug, starting from mixing, cooking, to packaging it for distribution.

According to Ari, etomidate cartridges were sold for between Rp2.5 million and Rp3 million each. Officers seized 824 ready-to-distribute etomidate units as evidence.

“He has been running this illicit business for three months with turnover exceeding Rp2 billion,” he said.

Previously, the Narcotics Criminal Investigation Unit of the North Jakarta Metropolitan Police Resort revealed that the foreign national suspect from China with initials CH (51) produced 824 units of ready-to-distribute etomidate narcotics worth more than Rp2 billion in several apartments in North Jakarta using a home industry system.

“This foreigner acted as the supplier of materials and mixed them until becoming ready-to-distribute narcotics,” said Ari in Jakarta on Wednesday (13/5).

He stated that the police arrested the suspect at a hotel and apartment in the Ancol area on 25 April 2026, after which they expanded the investigation to other suspected production sites for etomidate.