Police grab 3.5 kg of marijuana

BEKASI, West Java (JP): Police have arrested two men for allegedly attempting to traffic marijuana after they seized three and half kilograms of the contraband in a raid on one of the suspects' houses.

The Bekasi police precinct chief, Lt. Col. Alex Bambang Riatmodjo, said yesterday police officers apprehended the two men, Daniel, 40, and Bagus, 38, who were in a taxi in front of the Pondok Pekayon Indah housing complex.

"Police detectives from the narcotics unit who were in a car intercepted the taxi and caught the suspects red-handed with one kilogram of marijuana in their possession," Alex said.

Bekasi regency and North Jakarta mayoralty are next to each other.

He said Daniel admitted he hid another two and half kilograms of marijuana at his house in Rawabugel village, Harapan Jaya district in North Bekasi.

Another police source said the police had kept a close watch on the suspects for the past two weeks.

Alex said the suspects told police four of their accomplices carried the marijuana by ship from Aceh in Sumatra via Belawan seaport at the East coast of North Sumatra and stopped at the Tanjung Priok seaport in North Jakarta.

The source said the police knew who the four men were.

"Jakarta is the target city for marijuana trading while Bekasi might be used as a transit place," the source said.

The source said the suspects admitted they had brought marijuana from Aceh to Jakarta by ship twice before.

Daniel is reportedly a notorious hoodlum in the Tanjung Priok area while Bagus is an employee of a ceramic factory in Bekasi. (kod)