Three arrested for drug trafficking

Damar Harsanto The Jakarta Post Jakarta

Jakarta Police detectives revealed on Thursday that they had arrested three suspects as part of their Antik Jaya 2003 operation against drug pushers.

"We have been hunting down the three suspected drug pushers since February," said Jakarta Police chief of detectives for narcotics, Adj. Sr. Comr. Anjan Pramuka Putra.

The three suspects are David, 32, Tonny Hartono, 45, alias Ationg and Lie Ken Hao, 41 alias Acung.

Anjan said that Tonny was the first to be arrested by police at a rented house on Jl. Duri Raya, Tambora, West Jakarta, on Aug. 20.

Using Tonny as bait, detectives tried to set a trap for his accomplices in the drug ring by plotting a fake transaction.

During the fake transaction at a shop on Jl. Mangga Besar, West Jakarta, police managed to nab David and seized two plastic bags of shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine) weighing 60 grams placed in the bottom of a water dispenser.

Police also set up another fake transaction to catch another drug pusher Akuang, using 100 grams of shabu-shabu as bait. However, Akuang did not respond.

Instead, police managed to arrest another drug pusher Lie Ken Hao alias Acung at a house in Pluit Putra Kencana, North Jakarta.

"We confiscated 250 ecstacy pills from the suspect," Anjan said, adding that Acung belonged to another drug ring targeted by police.

Antik Jaya is an annual program of city police which is divided into several operations and aims to capture known drug dealers, who are still at large.

Drug-related offenses are the third most common crime in the capital after auto theft and burglary. -- JP