Meth Concealed in Stir-Fried Squid Uncovered at Jakarta Narcotics Prison
The Class IIA Narcotics Penitentiary in Jakarta has thwarted an attempt to smuggle methamphetamine brought in by a visitor. The drugs were concealed inside a dish of stir-fried squid.
"We successfully foiled a drug smuggling attempt. The modus operandi was that the individual came for a visit, brought food, and inside the stir-fried squid we found 12 packages of suspected illegal narcotics," said the Acting Head of the Jakarta Narcotics Prison, Edi Sigit Budiman, as reported by Antara on Thursday (25/6/2026).
Edi explained that the discovery stemmed from routine inspections of visitors and their belongings entering the prison area in accordance with the applicable standard operating procedure. The visitor had brought several types of food to the prison, and the methamphetamine was found in the stir-fried squid dish.
"From the belongings the individual carried, there was rice, stir-fried squid, and vegetables. We inspected the food according to the SOP, and that is where the illegal items were found inside the stir-fried squid," he clarified.
The finding was immediately reported to the leadership. Subsequently, the prison authorities coordinated with the Regional Office of the Directorate General of Corrections for Jakarta to determine the procedural handling steps.
"After reporting to the leadership, in this case the Head of the Regional Office of the Directorate General of Corrections Jakarta, as directed we reported this case to the authorities, namely the East Jakarta Metro Police," Edi stated.
The evidence along with the visitor who brought the food were handed over to the police for investigation and further development regarding the network involved. Two visitors were detained, identified by the initials K and RP. The man identified as K intended to meet an inmate to deliver the narcotics, while RP was merely a friend who provided transport.
Based on initial information obtained by officers, the perpetrator dared to carry out the smuggling attempt because he was promised a reward of Rp 500,000 if he succeeded in bringing the illegal items into the prison. The illegal goods reportedly originated from the Tanjung Priok area in North Jakarta.
"The information we have is that they obtained these items from the North Jakarta area, in Tanjung Priok. So the network, as we have learned, had the goods entrusted through a courier, which then reached the individual, and the plan was to send them to an inmate inside the prison," Edi said.
The Jakarta Narcotics Prison is committed to continuously strengthening supervision of visitors and their belongings to prevent the entry of prohibited items into the correctional environment.