Worth Tens Of Billions, The Indonesian Navy Suspects That There Is A Bandar That Funds The Smuggling Of Lobster Clash

Commander of the Navy Base (Danlanal) Palembang Marine Colonel (P) Sandy Kurniawan (left two) showed lobster seeds that were rescued from smuggling/DOK ANTARA

JAKARTA - The Palembang Navy Base (Lanal) suspects that there is a mastermind who is financing the smuggling of lobster clear seeds (BBL) for overseas destinations. In the last two months Lanal Palembang has thwarted two smuggling cases. The Commander of Lanal (Danlanal) Palembang Marine Colonel (P) Sandy Kurniawan explained that the value of the smuggled fry could reach tens of tens of billions of rupiah for one smuggling abroad. It is possible that the smugglers who were arrested by the officers were only accomplices to the intellectual actor. " “ So indeed the suspects we have arrested are like a disconnected network, they are only local residents who are assigned to cross over the evidence (fry, ed.) that is in front of us. However, if we look at the potential loss to the country which is quite large, it is reasonable to suspect that there are funds, so maybe there is an intellectual actor behind it,” Sandy said during a press conference in the case of smuggling fries at the TNI AL Main Base Command Headquarters (Mako Lantamal) III Jakarta, Antara, Thursday, May 16. So far, Lanal Palembang's fleet one quick response (F1QR) team is still investigating and exploring the information of smugglers. This information will later become a provision for the joint team to develop cases as well as dispel efforts to smuggle fry abroad in the future. The reason is, Sandy believes that smugglers will only act according to the season, namely when the fry are harvested at where they are cultivated. “ We believe that this is a season, for example in the area where they have been arrested for smuggling, they will immediately carry out the delivery. This means that the time is short. That's what we are trying to develop in the field. If there is still an activity for smuggling through the South Sumatra and Jambi regions, of course we will try to thwart it,” said Danlanal Palembang, who oversees the South Sumatra and Jambi regions. In these two areas, Sandy believes that he is often used as a transit center (hub) for fry to be smuggled into Singapore and then exported to Vietnam. The two areas became ideal transit centers, because they are located close to Singapore. “ Only in 2 hours can pass through Singapore so that it is ideal for them to use as the last hub before being taken abroad, ” he said. The joint F1QR team Lanal Palembang thwarted two smuggling actions for Singapore's destination in Banyuasin, South Sumatra on May 2, 2024, and in Tanjung Jabung Timur, Jambi on May 10, 2024. Of the two cases, the value of the smuggled fry was IDR 15 billion and IDR 46.8 billion, respectively. In the arrests on May 10, 277,800 clear lobster seeds were rescued, while on May 2, there were 99,648.

However, to calculate potential state losses, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries calculates commodity values and asset values of each fry. Special Assistant to the Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries for Media and Public Communications Doni Ismanto after a press conference at the same location explained that abroad, for example Vietnam, the price of lobster clear seeds per tail reached 1–2 US dollars or around Rp. 15,000 – Rp. 30,000, while the estimated price of fish (HPI) for per fry was Rp. 150,000. If calculating the potential loss of the state of the two cases refers to the value of the HPI, then the value is almost Rp. 50 billion.