Foreign Pilot Involved in 26kg Ecstasy Smuggling at Soekarno-Hatta Named Suspect and Detained
The Narcotics Crime Directorate of the Indonesian National Police (Bareskrim Polri) has officially named a foreign pilot, Mohd Saufi bin Othman, as a suspect following the alleged smuggling of 26 kilograms of ecstasy at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Mohd Saufi is currently being held in custody at Bareskrim Polri.
“He has been named a suspect and detained,” stated Brigadier General Eko Hadi Santoso, Director of Narcotics Crime at Bareskrim Polri, during a press briefing on Thursday (30/07/2026).
The foreign national faces charges under Article 113 paragraph (2) in conjunction with Article 114 paragraph (lar) and Article 132 paragraph (1) of Law Number 35 of 2009 concerning Narcotics, alongside relevant provisions of the Criminal Code and Law Number 1 of 2026 regarding Criminal Adjustment.
The case is being handled by Unit 1, Sub-directorate II of the Narcotics Crime Directorate. Investigators are currently conducting in-depth examinations of the suspect to identify and expand the investigation into his wider network.
Chronology of the Arrest
The discovery began when Customs officers grew suspicious during an X-ray inspection of passenger luggage at the International Arrival Terminal 3 of Soekarno-Hatta Airport on Tuesday (28/07) at approximately 23:30 WIB. Officers flagged a suitcase belonging to Mohd Saufi, who is a pilot for a foreign airline.
Upon further inspection of the suitcase and the individual in a Customs examination room, officers discovered 14 large packages of ecstasy, totaling more than 70,000 pills, as well as one package of methamphetamine. Customs subsequently notified the Narcotics Crime Directorate of Bareskrim Polri.
During interrogation, the suspect, Saufi, admitted he was instructed by an individual to transport the drugs to Jakarta. He claimed he was offered a payment of IDR 50,000 for the task. Upon arrival in Jakarta, he was allegedly instructed by an individual believed to be located in Malaysia that a contact would meet him at a hotel to collect the drugs.
Saufi confessed that this was his third time transporting narcotics; his first trip involved transporting methamphetamine to Sabah, and his second involved 7kg of methamphetamine to Jakarta. However, this third attempt was intercepted by authorities. Furthermore, a urine test conducted on the pilot returned positive for methamphetamine, ecstasy, and cocaine.