Aceh airport foils meth smuggling, four couriers arrested

Banda Aceh, Aceh (ANTARA) - Security officers at Sultan Iskandar Muda International Airport in Aceh thwarted two separate attempts to smuggle nearly four kilograms of methamphetamine, resulting in the arrest of four suspected couriers, police said.

“Following further investigation into the two cases, we have detained four suspects and seized nearly four kilograms of methamphetamine,” Banda Aceh Police Chief Senior Commissioner Andi Kirana told reporters on Friday.

The first case was uncovered on April 15 when airport security officers detected suspicious images on an X-ray monitor while screening a passenger’s suitcase. A search uncovered 12 packages of methamphetamine weighing a total of 1,976 grams.

Security personnel seized the narcotics and detained a suspect identified as AS before reporting the case to Banda Aceh police narcotics investigators, Andi said.

A subsequent investigation revealed that AS was accompanied by two associates while transporting the drugs from North Aceh District to Banda Aceh for shipment to Kendari, a city in Southeast Sulawesi Province.

Police later arrested two additional suspects, identified as MR and MGA, at a lodging facility in Pidie district. Investigators also placed a North Aceh resident known as “Abang” on a wanted list.

The second case occurred on May 10 at the same airport, where security officers detained a suspect identified as MK along with a cardboard box intended for shipment to Jakarta.

"Inside the box, officers found four plastic packages containing 1,918 grams of white crystals suspected to be methamphetamine weighing 1,918 grams,” Andi said.

Police also named another suspect, identified by the initials AS from Bireuen District in Aceh Province, as a fugitive in the second case.

Andi said all four detainees acted as couriers and were promised payment upon successful delivery. Couriers in the first case were offered 85 million rupiah (US$5,200), while the second shipment carried a fee of 60 million rupiah.

“All suspects arrested so far are couriers. We have not yet reached the drug syndicate leaders, and the investigation remains ongoing. We urge the public to assist with information,” Andi said.

The suspects were charged under Articles 114(2) and 115(1) of Indonesia’s 2009 Narcotics Law, as amended under Law No. 1 of 2026. Convictions are punishable by life imprisonment or the death penalty.

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Translator: Rahmad Nasution

Editor: M Razi Rahman

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