Man arrested with 38,000 ecstasy pills
Man arrested with 38,000 ecstasy pills
JAKARTA (JP): City police detectives arrested a 35-year-old
former coffin maker on Monday for allegedly possessing a total of
38,172 ecstasy pills worth over Rp 1.7 billion (US$234,500).
It is believed to be the country's single largest ecstasy
seizure. In 1996, television actress Zarima was arrested with
29,677 ecstasy pills.
The suspect, identified as Khwan Tjiang, alias Atjiang, alias
Benny Sembiring, a resident of Kalideres, West Jakarta, claimed
to not know who really owned the drugs.
Police said the pills were discovered in a suitcase in an
upscale house in Taman Surya III housing complex in Cengkareng,
West Jakarta.
Tjiang repeatedly pleaded his innocence to the police. He said
he had been hired by a man called Bang (brother) Lubis to watch
the house and package the pills.
"It's Bang Lubis who asked me to package the pills and I don't
know his address," an officer quoted Tjiang as saying.
Jakarta Police detectives chief Col. Alex Bambang Riatmodjo
said on Tuesday he and his men did not know the identity of the
true owner of the drugs.
"We'll build the case and hope that we can identify this Lubis
soon," Alex said, adding that Tjiang was still being questioned.
He said that as in many cases of this size, it could be
difficult to arrest the real owner of the drugs because he or she
would probably have connections with certain powerful people in
the country.
"It has always been difficult for us. Besides that, the
members of these well-organized drugs syndicates are smart enough
to keep their links with each other to a minimum," Alex said.
He said that Tjiang was only able to contact Lubis through his
cellular phone, adding that police had unsuccessfully attempted
to contact Lubis through his phone.
The arrest of Tjiang followed a week-long surveillance of the
house after police received a tip-off from an anonymous caller on
Monday last week.
The unidentified caller said a man riding a motorcycle was
seen around an empty house in the complex and his activities
seemed suspicious.
Snack packets
Tjiang said he was only hired by Lubis to place the pills into
empty snack packets.
He said he used empty Cheetos bags for "small orders" of 2,500
pills and empty Happytos bags for orders of between 5,000 and
10,000 pills.
The packets were then sealed using a special machine, which
was also confiscated during the raid.
Tjiang said he filled between 20 and 30 orders a day for which
he received between Rp 250,000 and Rp 300,000 per week from Bang
Lubis.
"Ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers always picked up the packages
and delivered the pills," he said.
Ojek drivers were also used by Lubis to deliver messages to
Tjiang.
"I've been doing this job for three weeks, since Bang Lubis
hired me to guard the house in Taman Surya," Tjiang, who claimed
to only have an elementary school education, said.
Police said Lubis employed more than one ojek driver at the
housing complex to deliver the packages of ecstasy to various
entertainment spots.
Before raiding the house, several police detectives went
undercover as ojek drivers to learn more about the operation.
"When we spoke with the ojek drivers, the clues all led to
Tjiang, who often came to the empty house and left the house
after the ojek drivers departed," one of the detectives said.
Tjiang said the pills were distributed to certain discotheques
in West and North Jakarta, but claimed he did not know the names
of the entertainment spots.
The pills -- claimed to be of the highest-quality -- were sold
for Rp 40,000 each.
With or without Lubis, Tjiang would face up to 15 years in
prison and a fine of up to Rp 300 million for possessing and
distributing the pills.(emf)