JAKARTA: Two British nationals have been arrested in Bali for allegedly attempting to smuggle cocaine into Indonesia.
The suspects, identified only by their initials K.G. and P.E., were apprehended in separate operations last week.
Bali Narcotics Agency head Rudy Ahmad Sudrajat confirmed the arrests during a press conference on Tuesday.
Airport security intercepted 29-year-old K.G. during a routine security check last Wednesday.
An X-ray examination revealed approximately 1.3 kilograms of cocaine concealed within his luggage.
Rudy stated that K.G. claimed he had been asked by someone named Santos to transport the bag from Barcelona to Bali.
The second suspect, P.E., was arrested at a villa in Bali’s Badung district the following day.
Authorities believe the two men are friends who previously lived together in Thailand.
Rudy suggested there was a possibility the pair belonged to an international drug cartel.
Indonesian drug laws rank among the world’s strictest, with trafficking convictions potentially carrying the death penalty.
Dozens of foreign nationals currently remain on death row in Indonesia for similar drug offences.
Indonesia last conducted executions in 2016, executing four drug convicts by firing squad.
The country has not carried out any death sentences in nearly a decade despite maintaining capital punishment laws.
The case continues to develop as authorities investigate possible international connections. – AFP
