The Task Force 115 recently has stopped the smuggling of 54,426 lobster seeds in Bakauheni Port, South Lampung, Lampung Province. Five alleged carriers had been arrested. The lobster seeds were smuggled to Vietnam and Singapore via Jambi.
The Head of Fish Quarantine and Inspection Agency Class I Lampung, Suardi, said on Wednesday (9/13), in Bandar Lampung, the lobster seeds were brought by two cars (Avanza) from Sukabumi, West Java, on Tuesday morning (9/12). To avoid the suspicion, the lobster seeds were put into bags, then packaged with the styrofoam. When the apparatus investigated, they found the smuggled-lobster seeds in the car.
Five alleged carriers were taken to the police station to furnish information. They are AP (21), AR (23), AB (31), DE (33), and YA (44). By looking at their ID they are from Sukabumi.
According to Suardi, this illegal transporting against the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Regulation Number 56 of 2016. The lobster allowed to trade abroad is one that has the weight of 200 gram or more. He assessed the smuggling worth of IDR8.2 billion.
Last Tuesday, the lobster seeds have been released in Lampung waters near Tiger Island (Pulau Harimau), Bakauheni. The location considered suits the lobster habitat.
Five Times
Within five months, there were five lobster smuggling cases found in Lampung. More than 100,000 lobster seeds (spiny lobster and sand lobster) had been traded illegally to Vietnam.
Other than the ground and sea transportation, the lobster seeds had also been smuggled via Radin Inten II Airport, South Lampung. It had been hiding in the baggage, and the scanning machine detected it that time.
The lobster seeds derived from the local fishers, the price of the 7-10 millimetres seeds valued of IDR7,000 per each and sold in Vietnam of IDR150,000-160,000 per each.
According to Suardi, the lobster seeds cultivated and sold abroad. Then it re-sold to several countries including Indonesia with the price per each of IDR1,000,000.
The illegal activities were involving many parties. Of five cases in Lampung, the smuggling discovered in Tanggamus, Pesisir Barat, and Java.
Hit and Run System
In order to confuse the officers, the lobster smuggling networks are using the hit and run system. The carriers did not know the owner of the goods they carry. They only have to pick the package up and drop them to the predefined locations. They even did not know what they took is the smuggled-lobster seeds.
“During the investigation, we often face difficulty to find the owner because the carriers get the order only by phone, without even knowing each other. The package owner disappeared when the carriers arrested,” said Suardi.
He added the rampant lobster smuggling occurred because of some countries still allowing the lobster trade. In Vietnam, for example, trade activities are not restricted. It makes the smuggler can easily flee and spared from the law.
According to Suardi, the illegal activity would hamper the sustainability of lobster population in Indonesia waters. It also worsens the economy for fisher who catches lobster for the living. In addition, it also would affect the export business in Indonesia.
Separately, the Sector Police Chief of Bakauheni Port, Police Commissioner Adjutant Enrico Donald Sidauruk said the case directly handled by the investigator of Indonesian Police Headquarters. The police still conducting the further investigation to expose the crime in several areas.
Enrico explained five carriers contravened the law of Article 88 junction Article 16 Paragraph 1 Law Number 45 of 2009; the amendment of the Law Number 31 of 2004 on Fisheries. The five punishable to three years in prison.
Since the rampant of smuggling through Lampung, the apparatus tightened the oversight in the entrance and exist in Bakauheni Port. The port authority had cooperated with other institutions and community to gather the information regarding the lobster seed smuggling. (Dds)
Source : Kompas
