Malaysian Pilot Arrested for Smuggling 25kg of Ecstasy to Indonesia, Paid 50,000 Ringgit

A Malaysian pilot, identified by the initials MS (39), has been arrested at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta for attempting to smuggle 25 kilograms of ecstasy into Indonesia. He was reportedly paid 50,000 Malaysian Ringgit (approximately IDR 220 million) for the operation. According to Hengky Tomuan Parlindungan Aritonang, Head of the Soekarno-Hatta Customs Office, this was MS's third involvement in drug smuggling. Previously, he had transported methamphetamine to Sabah, Malaysia, and 7 kilograms of methamphetamine to Jakarta. In the recent incident, besides ecstasy, 4 grams of methamphetamine were also found in his personal belongings. "Based on preliminary investigations, he was paid 50,000 Ringgit," stated Aritonang during a press conference in Tangerang on Friday (31/7/2026). The investigation began on July 29th when customs officers, acting on intelligence analysis, monitored MS, who was serving as a pilot on flight MH727 from Kuala Lumpur to Indonesia. A subsequent inspection of his belongings led to the discovery. "Based on intelligence analysis, the team became suspicious of the luggage carried by the pilot concerned. Upon inspection, the results were quite surprising," Aritonang explained. He added that after the inspection, the confiscated items and the pilot were handed over to the National Police's Criminal Investigation Unit (Bareskrim Polri). A urine test conducted on MS yielded surprising results, showing he was positive for methamphetamine, ecstasy (inex), and cocaine. "This fact confirms that the perpetrator consumed these illicit substances precisely while flying the plane carrying passengers from Kuala Lumpur to Indonesia," he stated. Meanwhile, Kombes Pol Awaludin Amin, Deputy Director of the Narcotics Crime Investigation Unit at Bareskrim Polri, added that the investigation and development of this case are still ongoing. "The authorities emphasize that they will not stop here and are committed to developing this case to the maximum extent to uncover the network behind it," he said. He mentioned that with the discovery of evidence and reinforced by forensic laboratory test results, it is proven that the suspect has committed the crime of illicit drug trafficking. "Secondly, it is clearly proven that the suspect committed narcotics crimes. Therefore, we have designated Mr. MS as a suspect," he stated. Currently, the suspect has been detained at the Bareskrim Polri detention center under Articles 113 (2) in conjunction with Article 114 (2) in conjunction with Article 132 (1) of Law Number 35 of 2009 concerning Narcotics. Source: Liputan6