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Islands in focus: Smugglers caught with lobsters worth Rp 6b
Officers from the Yogyakarta Fishing Quarantine Station foiled on Tuesday an attempt to smuggle lobsters worth more than Rp 6 billion (US$458,571)
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fficers from the Yogyakarta Fishing Quarantine Station foiled on Tuesday an attempt to smuggle lobsters worth more than Rp 6 billion (US$458,571).
Quarantine station investigator Haryanto said the baby lobsters were to have been smuggled to Singapore via Yogyakarta's Adi Sutjipto airport on an AirAsia flight at 7 a.m.
'The baby lobsters were put in plastic bags and placed inside six suitcases,' Haryanto said.
The cargo of lobsters, which were not equipped with proper documents, he added, were delivered by two couriers, one of them named Erik Ongko Wijaya, a resident of Surabaya, who were being detained at Yogyakarta Police headquarters for further investigation.
Station head Suprayogi said he suspected the smugglers were part of a network that captured baby lobsters in eastern Indonesia.
'Since security in Bali and Surabaya airports has been tightened, the perpetrators attempted to smuggle through airports in Semarang, Yogyakarta and Bandung,' Suprayogi explained.
He added that the suspects could be charged under Law No. 31/2004 on fishing, which carries a maximum punishment of six years in prison and a fine of Rp 1.2 billion.
