May Day Rioters in Bandung Consumed Hard Drugs Before Acting

West Java Regional Police have uncovered that the perpetrators of the riots during the International Labour Day or May Day action in the Cikapayang-Tamansari area, Bandung City, consumed hard drugs of the psychotropic type before carrying out their anarchic actions. Director of Narcotics Criminal Investigation at West Java Police, Senior Commissioner Pol Albert Raden Deddy Sulistyo Nugroho, stated that out of the 13 suspects secured, six were confirmed positive for consuming narcotics and psychotropics. “A few days ago, we uncovered the perpetrators of the riots or anarchic actions in Dago Cikapayang who burned the videotron and the police post there. We found them carrying psychotropics of the types Alprazolam and Riklona,” said Albert in Bandung on Wednesday. “Alprazolam causes a feeling of calmness and extraordinary confidence, so they dared to damage the police post, dared to challenge the officers on duty,” he added. Albert explained that this type of drug is different from Tramadol, which is a pain reliever and not classified as a psychotropic. According to him, prescriptions for psychotropic drugs like Alprazolam should only be issued by psychiatric specialists, not general practitioners. “What we found yesterday is that there are some pharmacies that accept purchases without a prescription, or pharmacies that provide the drug with a prescription not in accordance with the doctor’s competence,” said Albert.