BATAM: Indonesian authorities seized 106 kg of syabu on a Singapore-flagged vessel bound for Australia in the Riau Islands, yesterday.
Indonesia National Narcotics Agency (BNN) chief Commissioner General Martinus Hukom said an operation was launched following a tip-off alerting them of a syabu shipment from Johor which was expected to pass through Indonesian-waters.
"The Singapore-flagged vessel Legend Aquarius departed from an undisclosed port in Johor, sailed across the waters of Karimun, Riau Islands, with its destination being Brisbane, Australia," Martinus told a press conference held at the Customs Dock in Tanjung Uncang, here, Kompass.com reported.
Upon spotting the vessel, the narcotic enforcement officers conducted a thorough inspection which included its K9 Unit search dogs, leading to the discovery of the contraband hidden in a false compartment within the fuel tank.
Martinus said three Indian nationals, who are Singapore permanent residents on board the ship, are allegedly the masterminds of an international drug trafficking network.
"The men were not crew members, but were onboard the vessel. We believe they engineered the hidden compartment in the fuel room to hide the drugs," he said.
The syabu was packaged in Chinese tea bags, and concealed in a secondary fuel tank.
Martinus said the 10 Indonesian crew members onboard were non-complicit and will be act as state witnesses, when the suspects are charged.
The suspects are charged under multiple articles of Indonesia's Narcotics Law, with penalties including the death sentence.
Meanwhile, BNN deputy chief Wayan Sugiri said the suspects boarded the vessel in Johor.
They instructed the vessel's crew members to leave the boat for eight hours after claiming they were representing the vessel's operational management and needed to conduct some repair works.
"The suspects, skilled in ship repairs, used this opportunity to load the narcotics. Upon the crew's return, they noticed changes in the storage area of the backup fuel tank," Wayan said.
He added investigations are underway to establish if the suspects were employed by the Singapore-based company that owns the vessel.