GIANYAR - The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) has issued a warning that Bali has become a prime target for transnational drug kingpins, evidenced by the raids on two clandestine laboratories in May and July 2024, reported ANTARA news agency.
BNN Head Commissioner General Marthinus Hukom stated that these discoveries highlight the alarming presence of drug trafficking networks in Bali.
The first lab, found on May 13, was hydroponically growing cannabis and was operated by two Ukrainians and a Russian citizen in a villa in Tibubeneng, Badung District.
The second lab, discovered on July 18 in a rented villa in Keliki Kawan Village, Payangan Sub-district, Gianyar District, was producing dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a hallucinogenic drug.
During the raid, BNN officers arrested three Filipinos while a hunt was launched for a Jordanian citizen, identified as AMI, he noted.
"These findings must not be undermined as they have sounded the alarm bell for Bali and other regions in Indonesia as well because international drug syndicates could also target them as places of clandestine labs," he remarked.
The discovery of the second clandestine lab has also shown the fact that transnational drug rings have no longer smuggled illicit drugs into Bali but have also "launched an attack from inside" the resort island.
He said Bali is supposed to be special for Indonesia owing to its world-class tourism industry. Hence, he emphasised the need to protect it from the ongoing threats of local and international drug kingpins.
Meanwhile, BNN's law enforcement deputy, Insp. Gen. I Wayan Sugiri had stated earlier that the three Filipinos arrested during the raid of the second clandestine lab were identified by their initials as DAS, a 28-year-old man; PMS, DAS' mother; and DOS, DAS' sister.
DAS has been named a suspect while the two others have remained witnesses, he remarked, adding that the clandestine lab was found inside a tarpaulin tent that the suspects had set up in the front yard of the rented villa.
He added that BNN officers discovered chemical substances and lab equipment, including measuring glasses, beaker glasses, and a magnetic stirrer, as well as a plastic container of clear liquid containing the DMT substance.
DAS has been charged under Articles 114 (2), 113 (2), and 112 (2) of Law No. 35 of 2009 on Narcotics and is facing the death penalty or life imprisonment, he stated.
As reported earlier, drug lords still see Indonesia as a potential market due to its vast population and millions of drug users. The value of drug trade in the country is estimated to have reached about Rp66 trillion.
Consequently, Indonesia has seen drug addiction spiral into a life-threatening problem for millions of its people. - BERNAMA-ANTARA