Immigration official nabbed for drugs

JAKARTA (JP): Police arrested an Immigration officer at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport for stealing drugs contained in packages which were being processed by his office, Jakarta Police Detectives chief Sr. Supt. Harry Montolalu said on Tuesday.

Harry said the officer, Muhammad Hidayat, who worked in the intelligence department, had been using and selling the drugs he obtained from the packages for quite a long time.

"If there was a package of drugs which was seized by his office, Hidayat would pretend to secure it. But, in fact, he would steal some of the drugs," Harry explained.

He said that when police arrested Hidayat in a hotel room in Central Jakarta on Monday night, police only found one gram of shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine).

However, Harry said, this would not mean that he would get of the hook for using and dealing in drugs.(jaw)