Prosecutors Ask DPR Not to Interfere in the Case of 2 Tons of Crystal Meth Involving Crew Member Fandi

Prosecutors Ask DPR Not to Interfere in the Case of 2 Tons of Crystal Meth Involving Crew Member Fandi

The Public Prosecutor (JPU) has requested that all parties, including the DPR, refrain from interfering in the legal process of the 2-ton crystal meth smuggling case, which is currently being tried at the Batam District Court, Riau Islands (Kepri).

This was conveyed by the prosecutor in response to the defendant Fandi Ramadhan’s plea, who is a crew member in the 2-ton crystal meth smuggling case in Batam.

“For community figures, celebrities, members of the DPR, or anyone, let’s not interfere with the enforcement of the law,” said JPU Muhammad Arfian at the Batam District Court on Wednesday (25/2), as quoted by detikSumut.

In the trial, the prosecutor emphasized that the panel of judges must decide the case purely based on the facts of the trial, not because of interference from any party.

“Let the panel of judges decide this case fairly, as fairly as possible, based on the facts in the trial, not because of opinions or pressure from the public,” during the reading of the response.

Still Demanding the Death Penalty

In his response, the JPU also rejected all the defense arguments of the legal counsel, who claimed that the defendant was unaware of the narcotics cargo on the Sea Dragon tanker, which was being smuggled into Indonesia last year through the waters of Kepri.

The prosecutor assessed that the facts of the trial actually showed the defendant’s involvement in the process of transporting the illegal goods.

The evidence of crystal meth, with a total weight of approximately 1.9 tons, was found after the ship was intercepted by a joint team of the BNN (National Narcotics Agency), Customs, and the Indonesian Navy (TNI AL), and then taken to the Tanjunguncang Customs dock, Batam.

During the search, officers found dozens of boxes containing crystal meth hidden in the bow and fuel tanks of the ship.

The prosecutor emphasized that narcotics crimes are extraordinary crimes that have a major impact on the nation’s generation. Therefore, the handling must be firm and should not be influenced by public pressure.

At the end of the response, the JPU stated that he would remain with the demand for the death penalty for Fandi Ramadhan, as he had stated in the previous sentencing hearing.

“We remain with the criminal charges that we have submitted,” said the prosecutor.

The trial will continue with the agenda of the legal counsel’s rebuttal before the panel of judges delivers a verdict.

Meanwhile, Fandi Ramadhan’s legal counsel rejected all the responses submitted by the JPU. Fandi’s legal counsel stated that they would remain steadfast in the plea they had submitted.

“Therefore, after carefully reviewing the prosecutor’s response to the plea note (plea) that has been submitted by the legal counsel, we, as the legal counsel, hereby reject all of the prosecutor’s responses,” he said.

The trial will continue with the verdict agenda, which is scheduled for Thursday (5/3).

DPR Statement

Previously, Chairman of Commission XIII of the DPR RI, Willy Aditya, questioned the demand for the death penalty for the crew members of the Sea Dragon in the case of the discovery of nearly 2 tons of crystal meth on the ship.

Willy felt that the demand for the death penalty for the crew members of the ship was difficult to accept. According to him, the parties who were caught were ‘small fish’.

“It is difficult to accept the common sense if everyone is sentenced to death without any clarity of role. Moreover, in this case, only the small fish were caught,” said Willy when contacted by reporters, Tuesday (24/2).

He said that the law is not only about obeying the rules, but must also consider humanity and common sense. Willy hopes that the court will examine the power relations in the case. According to Willy, with the big players not yet caught, the verdict against the defendants must be done carefully.

“Where are the owners of the Sea Dragon, the owners of the MP North Star, the masterminds behind the transfer of goods in the middle of the sea, the recruiters of the crew,” he said.

Willy assessed that the discovery of 1,995.130 grams or about 2 tons of crystal meth in 67 boxes on the Sea Dragon tanker revealed the dark side of shipping, which is often used by drug mafias to recruit living shields for their business.

He said he was concerned about the defendants in the case, who are actually ordinary laborers, but are being prosecuted with the same punishment.

“Look at the list of defendants, there are those who are just low-level laborers, others are their superiors, or recruits from abroad (Thailand). But they are all prosecuted with the same charges,” said Willy.

Willy then highlighted the occupants of prisons in Indonesia, which are dominated by drug users and low-level dealers. Only a few big bosses are caught.

“Once detailed, the majority are users, intermediaries, and the like. Only a few are big bosses,” said the man who leads the DPR commission in charge of Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections.

Response from the Deputy Attorney General

Previously, the Deputy Attorney General of the Riau Islands (Kepri), Diah Yuliastuti, spoke about the demand for the death penalty for the defendants, including the defendant Fandi Ramadhan, who is an Indonesian crew member.

According to her, the defendant, along with his colleagues, namely Hasiholan Samosir, Leo Chandra Samosir, and Richard Halomoan Tambunan, departed on May 10, 2025, using an Air Asia plane from Medan to Bangkok, Thailand.

They are said to have known from the beginning that they would be recruited by an illegal crew recruitment company to be crew members on the Sea Dragon tanker, which was carrying nearly 2 tons of crystal meth.

“In essence, we would like to state here that the defendant already knew from the beginning that he was being recruited by an illegal crew recruitment company to be a crew member on the Sea Dragon, a tanker ship that was supposed to carry oil but already knew that later on the way it would carry 67 boxes containing crystal meth, totaling about 1.9 tons,” said Diah when confirmed by CNNIndonesia.com, Friday (20/2).

Fandi was sentenced to death on February 5 after the discovery of about 2 tons of crystal meth on the ship he worked on.

In the primary indictment, the Public Prosecutor (JPU) explained that the distribution