FOREIGNERS ARRESTED OVER PSYCHOTROPIC SUBSTANCES

JAKARTA (JP): Customs officers at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport
have arrested two foreigners for attempting to smuggle 157,640 pills
and 3,008 vials of medicine containing psychotropic substances into
the country.

Head of the airport's customs and excise office Jody Koesmendro told
reporters on Tuesday that the arrests were made on Sunday.

He identified the two suspected smugglers as Pakistani national
Muhammad Aslam, 32, and Sri Lankan national Muhammad Ismail, 35.

The two suspects, Jody said, had just disembarked from Garuda Airlines
flight GA-859 from Hong Kong via Singapore which landed at the airport
at 9:45 p.m. on Sunday.

"The two were firstly arrested for their suspicious behavior. Using an
X- ray detector, our officials later found the drugs inside two blue
travel bags owned by the suspects," he explained.

During preliminary questioning, the two admitted their wrongdoing
without presenting any problems to the airport investigators, he said.

According to Jody, the seizure of the illegal drugs was based on a
tip-off from an intelligence report.

He, however, refused to explain further.

Separately, National Police deputy chief of narcotics crime detectives
Col. Wilhelmus Laturette said police were unable to estimate the price
of the seized substances.

"We're still collecting information and are on the lookout for their
friends who are due to arrive here soon," Wilhelmus told The Jakarta
Post.

The confiscated drugs included Librak tablets for gastric problems,
which Wilhelmus said also contained a certain amount of psychotropic
substances.

According to Article 61, of Law No. 5/1997 on Psychotropic Substances,
the maximum sentence for carrying such drugs is 10 years imprisonment
and a fine of Rp 300 million (US$40,000).

The smuggling of illegal medicines into the country has been growing
in the past few months as many people are struggling to get cheaper
medicines in this time of economic crisis.

A health ministry official warned people in Jakarta on Monday to
carefully purchase medicines since he believed that many bogus
medicines were flooding stores here.

On Tuesday, a drug store attendant at the busy Chinese drug store
complex in Pancoran, West Jakarta, showed the Post an original and a
low-quality version of a Chinese medicine used for stimulating the
appetite.

Both types of pill came in a plastic bottle which was in a cardboard
box, and uneasy for people to spot the difference.

The attendant was offering the original for Rp 35,000, while the low-
quality pills were Rp 25,000.

"The expensive ones are genuine, while the cheaper ones are of lower
quality, or possibly bogus," he said.

There was no registration number on either the box or
bottle.

Meanwhile, director general of customs and excise at the Ministry of
Finance Permana Agung said there was a growing trend of smuggling
psychotropic drugs via airports or seaports into the country, based on
orders from hospitals, particularly those located in Greater Jakarta.

Such drugs are produced abroad and are difficult to find in the
market.

"The indication is based on our investigation and we cooperated with
the police to uncover the operation," he told Antara on Tuesday.

Permana also said his office had also coordinated with the directorate
general for food and medicine control at the Ministry of Health, which
had the detailed information on the circulation of medicines in the
country. (41/ylt/ind/bsr)