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ANGERANG: Customs and excise officers at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport have arrested an Iranian citizen for attempting to smuggle 1 kilogram of crystal methamphetamine worth Rp 1.5 billion (US$166,000).

The chief investigator at the customs office, Gatot Sugeng Wibowo, said the suspect, identified as Allahverdi Etamani, 51, arrived Saturday on a Qatar Airways flight from Tehran.

Customs Tactical Unit Team members at the international terminal were suspicious of spare engine parts in the suspect’s luggage, he said.

“Even the scanning device failed to detect the strange objects hidden inside the spare parts,” Gatot said, adding that officers finally opened and examined four pipe-like spare parts and found the drugs inside.

He said the suspect, who works as truck driver in Tehran, admitted that he was asked by a man named Ali to transport the drugs to Jakarta in return for $2,000 if the mission was successful.

Police and customs officials have so far failed to track down those waiting to receive the drug. — JP