Jambi police detain palm oil hoarders

JAMBI, Jambi: Batanghari district police in the province of Jambi have intensified efforts to uncover those involved in a network stockpiling crude palm oil, following the arrest of two suspects.

Batanghari Police Chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Joko Turochman said on Monday that he had sent a team of detectives and intelligence officers to probe the network in the regency.

The suspects, identified by his initials as Sit, 40, and his worker, named only as LS, were arrested with at least 107 drums of oil during an operation at the villages of Sungai Buluh and Ladangpris Bajubang.

Joko said many individuals or officials were suspected of involvement in the hoarding, which has caused an unspecified amount of losses to the regency, particularly state-owned plantation firms.

He said the officials in question had tried to defend the detained suspects by providing data that contradicted the findings in the field. --Antara