Five Malaysians Arrested in Jakarta Over Attempt to Smuggle 5kg of Etomidate in Shoes

JAKARTA, Sept 29 – Five Malaysian nationals have been detained in Indonesia after allegedly attempting to smuggle five kilogrammes of etomidate—a potent anesthetic used as a synthetic drug—concealed in the soles of their shoes aboard a commercial flight from Kuala Lumpur.

Indonesian National Police Narcotics Crime Directorate Unit III Head Ivan Adhitira stated that officers flagged the group, comprising four men and one woman aged between 21 and 49, following suspicious behavior upon arrival at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta on Friday.

A thorough secondary inspection revealed ten packets of white powder weighing a total of five kilogrammes hidden within the insoles of the suspects’ footwear. Laboratory testing subsequently confirmed the substance as etomidate.

Interrogations revealed that the five individuals were recruited through a Telegram messaging group by a handler known only as “Madam” in Malaysia, who offered them RM9,000 each to transport the substance from Kuala Lumpur.

Following the airport arrests, Indonesian police executed a controlled delivery operation at a hotel in Jakarta. The operation led to the arrest of a Chinese national who received a suitcase containing the smuggled etomidate from two of the Malaysian suspects.

A subsequent search of an apartment tied to the Chinese national in North Jakarta uncovered a clandestine laboratory equipped to produce etomidate-infused vape pods.

Police seized raw materials and assembly equipment estimated to be worth Rp127.5 billion (approximately RM33.5 million), which could have been used to manufacture roughly 42,500 illicit vape pods.

All six suspects remain in custody as investigations continue. They face up to 20 years in prison or life imprisonment under Indonesia’s narcotics and criminal legislation upon conviction.

–NMT