Illegal Gold Mining Raids In Tolitoli And Buol Leak, Even Though Police Arrived At Dawn

Head of Public Relations of the Central Sulawesi Police, Kombes Pol. Didik Supranoto (Photo via Antara)

JAKARTA - The Central Sulawesi Regional Police have disciplined the locations of illegal gold mining (PETI) in Tolitoli and Buol Regencies. They also detained six units of heavy equipment.

"The find of heavy equipment and other items will be immediately secured and will coordinate with the Tolitoli Police and carry out investigation steps to determine who the perpetrators are involved in mining without a permit," said Head of Public Relations of the Central Sulawesi Police, Kombes Pol. Didik Supranoto, in Palu, Monday, July 11.

Didik said the control of PETI in Tolitoli and Buol Regencies was led by the Tipidter of the Special Criminal Investigation Directorate (Ditreskrimsus) of the Central Sulawesi Police. As a result, the team only found traces of mining activities, a base camp and six units of heavy equipment around Sungai Tube.

"When they arrived at the mining site, no mining activity was found, it is suspected that the information from the Central Sulawesi Police team who was dispatched to the mining site without a permit was known, so that neither the workers nor the PETI perpetrators were there," he explained.

Didik explained that the Central Sulawesi Police team arrived in Lampasio District, Tolitoli Regency on Sunday morning at around 02.30 WITA. Then the team went to the shelter in Alisang Village, Basidondo Tolitoli Sub-district, which was suspected to be the temporary residence of the workers.

"At the base camp only one worker with the initials OT was found and some equipment for mining," he said.

From the OT's statement, the team later found four units of heavy equipment that were deposited at AM's land location along with some equipment used to carry out mining activities.

The team did not stop there and went back to searching for other heavy equipment and found two units of heavy equipment hidden around a residential area located in Batuan Hamlet, Ogomatanang Village, Lampasio District, Tolitoli Regency.

"At 09.20 WITA the team conducted an inspection of the OT at the base camp and at 12.45 WITA the team visited the mining site to collect coordinates and documentation," said Didik.