Receiving 493 Grams Of Cocaine From Russia, Tourism Guides In Bali Are Threatened With The Death Penalty

Suspect INK tour guides in Bali are involved in the circulation of cocaine/ Photo: IST

TANGERANG - Soekarno-Hatta Airport Customs and Excise thwarted the smuggling of 493 grams of cocaine from Spain. The perpetrator's mode of tricking the officers, and the detection tool, namely by attaching it to the certificate paper.

"Officers found 10 positive certificates containing cocaine," said Head of the Soekarno-Hatta Customs Office, Gatot Sugeng Wibowo to reporters, Tuesday, July 25.

Gatot said, the beginning of the case was revealed when officers examined the perpetrators, Thursday, May 29 at Soetta Airport. Then the officer found a plastic package containing white crystalline powder weighing 116 grams which was inserted into the book.

"After testing in the laboratory, the results were positive for narcotics class 1 type of cocaine," he said.

On that basis, his party formed a joint team with the Directorate of Narcotics Interdiction DJBC and the Dittipid Narcotics Bareskrim Polri to carry out case development. As a result, a package of goods was detected to the final destination to someone with the initials INK (52) in the Bali area.

Then it was re-detected that there was a second shipment on June 10, 2023, from Spain which was also addressed to INK players in Bali.

"When the examination was carried out using a detection tool and laboratory test on the package that was notified as the document, officers found 10 positive certificates containing cocaine weighing 377 grams," he said.

Based on the examination, INK, which works as a tour guide, acts as a recipient of illegal goods in Bali.

"It plays a role as a recipient of goods in Bali. Controllers who are foreign nationals (WNA) from Russia, with the initials AF, a former drug convict at Bangli Prison and have been deported on March 14, 2023," he said.

Currently, the perpetrators along with evidence in the form of cocaine weighing a total of 493 grams, were handed over to the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Police for further processing.

The perpetrator was charged with Law Number 35 of 2009 concerning Narcotics with a maximum threat of the death penalty or life imprisonment.