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View all search resultsNorth Sumatra Police arrest over 1,100 in drug crackdown
North Sumatra has the highest rate of drug abuse in Indonesia. Around 1.5 million people, roughly 10 percent of the province’s 15 million residents, are affected by drug abuse, significantly higher than the national average of 2.7 percent.
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The North Sumatra Police headquarters, located in the provincial capital of Medan, is seen in this undated handout photograph. (North Sumatra Police/File)
T
he North Sumatra Police have arrested more than 1,100 individuals in the past two months amid a major crackdown on drug trafficking in the province.
Brig. Gen. Tatar Nugroho, head of the North Sumatra office of the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), praised the effort but warned that the challenge remains immense, as North Sumatra has the highest rate of drug abuse in Indonesia.
According to Tatar, around 1.5 million people, roughly 10 percent of the province’s 15 million residents are affected by drug abuse. This is significantly higher than the national average of 2.7 percent. He added that an estimated 1.5 tonnes of illegal drugs circulate in the province every month, with a total market value of approximately Rp 1.5 trillion.
“What we have done so far has not yet produced the desired results, as drug distribution in North Sumatra remains high. Nationally, drug abuse is also on the rise,” Tatar said during a press conference.
A 2023 survey by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) and the BNN found that 1.73 percent of Indonesians aged 15–64, about 3.3 million people, abused drugs. By 2025, this figure had risen to 2.7 percent.
North Sumatra Police chief, Insp. Gen. Whisnu Hermawan Februanto, has called on all officers in the province to step up their fight against drug trafficking, stressing that North Sumatra must be free of narcotics.
He also warned police personnel against any involvement with drug networks.
