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Police kill suspected drug mule, seize over 3 kg of meth
The police have killed a suspected drug mule after he allegedly resisted arrest
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span>The police have killed a suspected drug mule after he allegedly resisted arrest. They also seized 3,237 grams of methamphetamine worth Rp 3.23 billion (US$229,062) in an operation.
Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Yusri Yunus said on Wednesday that the police tried to arrest the man, identified only as M, who was believed to be part of the Jakarta-Palembang drug network as both a mule and dealer.
After monitoring M’s alleged drug network activity, they arrested him in front of Balai Sudirman in South Jakarta, following a report from the public. During the arrest, the police found 990 g of meth in his possession.
M then led the officers to his residence in South Jakarta, where they found another 2,247 g of meth inside Chinese tea packaging and individual plastic zipper bags.
Yusri said the shooting later took place at a third undisclosed location. He alleged that M was trying to snatch an officer’s gun and put up a fight.
Claiming that the police had followed standard operating procedure, Yusri said the police had to shoot M to control the situation. He died on the way to the R. Said Soekanto Police Hospital in Kramat Jati, East Jakarta.
“During initial questioning, M said he had received some Rp 20 million for every delivery of 1 kilogram of meth,” Yusri said at a press conference at the police hospital on Wednesday.
The officers concluded that M had transported the meth four times in 5 kg batches. M had told them that he had received the drugs from a person identified only as A.
The police are now on the hunt for A, who is a suspect on a wanted list, to determine the source of the drugs and whether they tied to a bigger network,
“The Jakarta Police are still trying to uncover the ownership of the meth. We already have names [that we can pursue]. Let’s hope that we can quickly arrest [the person] and develop this case in order to catch [the bigger fish],” said Yusri.
When asked whether the drug network was connected to prison-controlled drug rings, Yusri said there was not enough evidence to draw such conclusions.
“The Jakarta Police are still trying to uncover the ownership of the meth. We already have names [that we can pursue]. Let’s hope that we can quickly arrest [the person] and develop this case in order to catch [the bigger fish].”
According to a statement by National Narcotics Agency (BNN) head Comr. Gen. Heru Winarko, the nation’s drug trafficking network is predominantly controlled inside prison cells.
“I [have to] admit that more than 90 percent [of drug transactions] are controlled from behind bars,” Heru said on Aug. 13 as quoted by kompas.com.
Heru also added that marijuana and meth were the two most distributed drugs among the public.
Recently, the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) announced it would be working alongside numerous parties to put an end to the prison-controlled drug trafficking network.
“We will work with the BNN, the Political, Legal and Security Affairs Ministry, the Law and Human Rights Ministry’s Penitentiaries Directorate General, the Indonesian Military and residents living near the prisons,” Bareskrim narcotics division head Big. Gen. Eko Daniyanto told kompas.com on Monday. (ydp)
