Bali police arrest Turkish DJ over 1.2 kg cocaine smuggling

Denpasar, Bali (ANTARA) - Bali police have uncovered a cocaine smuggling case involving a Turkish national who allegedly brought more than 1.2 kilograms of the drug into Indonesia through the island’s main international airport, authorities said on Saturday.The head of Bali Regional Police, Inspector General Daniel Adityajaya, said the suspect, identified as Halil Sener, 26, works as a disc jockey and was arrested shortly after arriving in Bali

Sener was detained on Tuesday after landing at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport on Emirates flight EK368 from Dubai, Adityajaya told reporters at a press conference. Investigators found the suspect was carrying cocaine weighing 1,295.20 grams, equivalent to about 1.2 kilograms, in what police believe is part of an international drug trafficking network.

“Based on our investigation, the suspect admitted he was asked for help by someone named Miami. We traced this information and identified links to a wider network, which is most likely international,” Adityajaya said.

The case was uncovered after officers from Ngurah Rai Customs and Excise conducted an X-ray scan of the suspect’s luggage during routine checks at the airport. The scan revealed suspicious items, prompting officers to open the bag and find a clear plastic package containing a white powder suspected to be cocaine.

Customs officers then coordinated with the Bali police narcotics unit to conduct a more thorough search of the suspect’s belongings and body. Laboratory tests later confirmed the substance was cocaine, with a total weight of 1,295.20 grams, police said.

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During questioning, Sener told investigators he had been instructed by a person identified only by the initial “M,” whom he claimed to have met previously at a hotel in Brazil. Police said “M,” believed to be a foreign national, is now the focus of an ongoing investigation as authorities work to identify and locate the suspected coordinator.

According to Adityajaya, Sener claimed he had not yet received any payment for transporting the drugs into Indonesia.

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“He said the cocaine was only meant to be handed over to M. We are still tracing M’s whereabouts in Bali,” Adityajaya said.

Following further investigation, police formally named Sener as a suspect and charged him under Indonesia’s revised criminal code on narcotics offenses.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment or up to 20 years in prison under the relevant articles of the criminal law, police said.