Subsidised Diesel Smuggling Syndicate Uncovered; Modus Operandi Involves Bulk Purchases at Petrol Stations for Resale at Industrial Prices

The Banten Regional Police, through the Special Criminal Investigation Directorate (Ditreskrimsus), have successfully uncovered a syndicate involved in the misuse of subsidised diesel in Kampung Salira, Salira Village, Serang Regency.

Banten Regional Police Head of Public Relations, Kombes Pol Maruli Ahiles Hutapea, stated that during the investigation, police secured and identified two suspects, initials NS and GJ.

“The main suspect, NS, acted as the financier who supplied funds to suspect GJ,” Hutapea said in a written statement received in Tangerang on Sunday.

He explained the chronology of the case, which began with an investigation conducted by the investigative team at the PT Yasa Mitra Karya (YAMIKA) site in the Serang area on Thursday, 24 September. This was the location where the syndicate operated, using heavy tronton trucks to bulk-purchase subsidised diesel from several petrol stations (SPBU) along the Serang-Merak route.

“Once the vehicle tanks were filled, the trucks would return to the PT YAMIKA area. At that location, an employee with the initials RH was tasked with siphoning the diesel from the truck tanks into 35-litre jerrycans,” he explained.

The diesel from these jerrycans was subsequently collected into a large storage container (kempu) with a one-tonne capacity to be resold on the market at industrial prices of Rp11,000 per litre to reap personal profits.

Based on the investigators’ findings, it was revealed that the primary suspect, NS, acted as the financier providing funds to suspect GJ. This capital was then distributed to the tronton truck drivers at a rate of Rp1 million per person to purchase diesel using their respective Pertamina barcodes.

“Banten Regional Police will continue to enforce the law against all forms of misuse of subsidised fuel. We urge the public to use subsidised fuel only for its intended purpose,” he added.

He noted that from this operation, police seized several pieces of evidence, including four tronton trucks, one large storage container containing approximately 1,000 litres of subsidised diesel, 22 jerrycans with a 35-litre capacity containing subsidised diesel, one electric water pump, and supporting equipment such as hoses and funnels.