JAKARTA: Three Philippine men could face the death penalty in Indonesia after being caught trying to smuggle methamphetamine with a street value of $2.1m into the country, an official said yesterday.
The trio were arrested last week with the 15.3 kilogram (33.7 pound) drugs haul after arriving from Hong Kong at the main airport serving the capital Jakarta, customs official Okto Irianto said.
“They hid the crystal methamphetamine in 15 boxes of milk powder. Each brought five boxes in their suitcase,” he said.
The trio, whose names were not released, allegedly carried the drugs, which the official said had a street value of $2.1m with them in their hand luggage.
The men, one aged in his 40s, one in his 50s, and the third 61, admitted having previously smuggled drugs into other countries, according to Irianto.
“They are professional couriers and this was their first attempt to smuggle drugs into Indonesia,” Irianto said. Police are quizzing them to find out more details about the drug-smuggling gang they worked with. They could face the death penalty if found guilty under Indonesia’s tough drugs laws, Irianto said.
AFP
