KKP Destroys 220 Kilograms Of Illegal Dried Seahorses

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) destroyed 220.12 kilograms of illegal dried seahorses in the Nambo area, Klapa Nunggal, Bogor Regency, West Java.

"We are destroying this, because this commodity is to be smuggled," said the Head of the Fish Quarantine, Quality Control and Fishery Product Safety (BKIPM) KKP Rina, in a press release quoted by Antara, Thursday, December 30.

As is known, the destruction of the commodity is a follow-up to the disclosure made by BKIPM with Customs and Excise in Marunda, North Jakarta, early December 2021.

Rina said the extermination was carried out to provide a deterrent effect while preventing the existence of Quarantined Fish Disease Pests (HPIK).

The plan, the dried seahorse will be sent to Vietnam and packed into 23 cartons. In addition to dried seahorses, there are also dried fish body parts as much as 553.53 kg and packaged in 46 cartons.

"This destruction is not only a form of prevention but also a warning, don't try to smuggle. We will take firm action," he said.

For information, from this smuggling case, the officers detained two perpetrators with the initials DA and SF. The two were arrested during a raid on a warehouse in Marunda, North Jakarta.

According to the DA perpetrator, he worked with a person with the initials J in Malaysia to provide a storage area. The item belonged to J and was placed in a warehouse before being shipped to Vietnam via SF.

Meanwhile, SF admitted to receiving an email from a logistics agent in Vietnam. He was asked to send export goods to the country without knowing the type of goods to be exported.

Seahorse (Hippocampus spp) is one of the 'fish' species included in the CITES appendix list (list of threatened flora and fauna).

Previously, the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, stated that the practice of smuggling is detrimental to the state, both in terms of the economy and the sustainability of resources. He also asked his staff to fight against smuggling.