Five nabbed in drugs haul

Five nabbed in drugs haul

JAKARTA (JP): The Police have arrested four men and one woman
for illegally possessing and trafficking more than two kilograms
of marijuana.

A City Police Headquarters source said over the weekend that
one of the men had smuggled the 2.5 kilograms of marijuana from
Johor, Malaysia.

"The man bought it for around 900 Malaysian Ringgit (US$357)
per kilogram," he said.

He said the man, identified as An, aged 35, smuggled the drug
to Batam Island by speedboat and then took it to Jakarta by land.

Police said An claimed that it was the first time he had ever
sold the drug.

"I bought it on request from someone I knew here," police
quoted An as saying.

Police arrested An on Friday night when he was about to make a
deal with a man identified as Saf in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta.

Saf, aged 34, who was also arrested by the police, denied he
was the buyer. He said that he was just collecting a consignment
ordered by another man.

According to An, the marijuana could be sold for around Rp 3.5
million (US$1,428) here. "It tastes better than the local Aceh
marijuana," said An, who used to work in Malaysia.

The other three people, including An's wife Nur, were arrested
Saturday in Villa Pamulang, Tangerang, West Java, after police
questioned An and Saf.

In a later confession, however, An said that he sold marijuana
because he could make a lot of money from it.

"This is a promising business. I can make up to Rp 5 million
by smuggling two kilograms of marijuana," police quoted him as
saying.

An said that he did not face any trouble on his trip from
Johor to Indonesia. "No officers questioned me. No one suspected
I was bringing the drugs into the country via the two-hour trip
to Batam Island," An was quoted as saying.

An and his four accomplices are being detained for further
questioning. (cst)