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View all search resultsBatam foils attempt to smuggle in 148 doctored vape pods from Malaysia
An Indonesian man traveling back from Malaysia has been detained as a suspect for allegedly attempting to smuggle 148 vape pods containing an anesthetic drug via Batam's ferry terminal.
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Two officers from the Batam Customs and Excise Office flank a man (center) suspected of trying to smuggle 148 vape pods containing the anesthetic drug etomidate from Malaysia to Indonesia via Batam’s Harbour Bay ferry terminal in the Riau Islands on Dec. 17, 2025, in this undated picture.
(Courtesy of Batam Customs and Excise Office/-)
T
he Batam Customs and Excise Office have detained a ferry passenger traveling from Malaysia over suspicions of attempting to passenger to smuggle 148 vape pods containing etomidate, which is commonly listed as a hazardous substance.
Etomidate is an anesthetic drug typically administered intravenously for short medical procedures and has the same effect as ketamine, another anesthetic that has some dissociative and psychedelic effects.
The smuggling attempt was foiled on Dec. 17, when a K-9 team from the Batam customs office detected the contraband during a routine search of passengers arriving aboard the Marine Hawk 5 at the Batam Harbour Bay Ferry Terminal in the Riau Islands.
Sniffer dog Bary responded to an Indonesian man who was traveling on the ferry, and customs officers discovered 148 vape pods during a subsequent physical search and X-ray scan of his luggage.
Evi Octavia, head of compliance and information services at the Batam customs office, said on Monday that laboratory tests confirmed that all vape pods contained etomidate, while the suspect tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine.
“The success is the result of field officers’ diligence and alertness as part of [our] commitment to prevent the entry of narcotics and dangerous substances through our border,” he said.
Customs officers have handed over the suspect and the confiscated vape pods to the Riau Islands Police for further processing.
