A Malaysian woman was arrested last month at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, for allegedly trying to smuggle thousands of ecstasy pills into the country by hiding them in her underwear
Malaysian woman was arrested last month at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, for allegedly trying to smuggle thousands of ecstasy pills into the country by hiding them in her underwear.
The 27-year-old was caught carrying 1,470 ecstasy pills in a sanitary pad that she was wearing, according to Customs and Excise Office head Erwin Situmorang.
“This is the first time we have found ecstasy pills [hidden] inside a sanitary pad — they are usually used to smuggle sabu-sabu [crystal methamphetamine],” Erwin said on Thursday as quoted by wartakota.tribunnews.com.
The arrest was made on April 20 when airport authorities spotted a passenger who had just arrived from Kuala Lumpur behaving suspiciously. After searching the passenger, they found the pills wrapped in plastic inside her underwear.
The suspect admitted that she had been instructed to take the drugs to a hotel in North Jakarta and wait for further instructions.
Airport police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Togi Tambunan explained that the suspect called someone in Malaysia, who instructed her to store the drugs in a hotel room, return the room key to the receptionist and then fly back to Malaysia.
The person told her that someone would pick up the ecstasy pills later.
Customs and Excise officers then coordinated with the airport police to make a controlled delivery at the hotel.
“We waited for hours after the checkout time passed, but no one came to pick up the drugs. Therefore, we decided to take the pills and the suspect to our headquarters for further investigation,” Togi said.
The suspect could be charged under Law No. 35/2009 on narcotics, which carries a maximum sentence of death.
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