Two arrested with 30 boxes of drugs

JAKARTA (JP): A 58-year-old man and his 20-year-old son were arrested by police detectives with 30 boxes of drugs in front of a courier company in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday, a police officer said.

City police detectives chief Col. Alex Bambang Riatmodjo identified the two men as Nanikram Pramchan and son Vijay Nanikram Mahbubone, both residents of Jl. Cikini Raya.

Inside the boxes, police found thousands of tablets and pills bearing the Merck Librax trademark, Alex said.

Police are still investigating the nationalities of the two suspects.

"They were arrested after they took the boxes, containing illegal drugs, from a courier company in front of a hotel on Jl. Tanah Abang," Alex said.

Alex, however, declined to give details on the arrest or how police learned of the suspects' activities.

"It's an ordinary case. As usual we received a tip-off from the public," he said.

Both Nanikram and his son admitted the packages were theirs but they strongly denied the drugs were illegal.

Nanikram, a medicine supplier, said he had a license for the drugs.

"We run a legal business and we have a license to import the drugs," he said at city police headquarters. (emf)