Customs in Jambi Busts Illegal Cigarette Hoard, Suspect Pays $250 Million Rupiah Fine

Customs and Excise officers in Jambi, Indonesia, have successfully intercepted a stash of illegal cigarettes, seizing thousands of packs and arresting one suspect. The operation took place in the Simpang IV Sipin area of Telanaipura District in Jambi City.

The crackdown was initiated after customs received a tip regarding the alleged storage of untaxed tobacco products. Upon receiving the information, the Jambi Customs team promptly conducted an inspection of a building suspected of being used for storing the contraband. During the search, officers discovered thousands of cigarette packs that were not affixed with the required tax stamps.

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After receiving the information, Jambi Customs immediately followed up and the team inspected the building suspected of being a place for storing illegal cigarettes.

The suspect, identified by the initial H, along with all the confiscated evidence, was taken to the Jambi Customs Office for further investigation. While the evidence indicated a violation of customs laws, specifically Article 54 and/or 56 of Law Number 11 of 1995 concerning Excise, the case was not pursued to a full investigation. This was made possible through the Ultimum Remedium mechanism outlined in Article 40B of Law Number 7 of 2021, which allows for the cessation of investigation if the perpetrator pays an administrative sanction in the form of a fine.

The suspect, H, applied for the case not to proceed to investigation and agreed to pay the administrative fine. The imposed penalty amounted to Rp250,656,000, which has since been deposited into the state treasury. Jambi Customs Head Dafit Kasianto clarified that the payment was purely an administrative fine and firmly denied viral reports of a Rp700 million demand or extortion. All seized items have been declared State Property and will be destroyed, with no provision for their return to the offender. Jambi Customs reiterated its commitment to combating the circulation of illegal cigarettes in the province.

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There was no demand or extortion of Rp700 million to resolve the case as had gone viral. However, there was a payment of an administrative sanction in the form of a fine.