MOSCOW, January 8 (Sputnik) — An alleged Hong Kong drug kingpin wanted in seven jurisdictions was arrested during a raid by Indonesian authorities, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported Thursday.
"His [crime] syndicate has been a target of the National Narcotics Agency [BNN] for three years and the subject of an intensive investigation in cooperation with authorities in Macau, Hong Kong and Malaysia for the past year," Indonesia"s BNN deputy for Narcotics Eradication Affairs Dedi Fauzi, was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
Indonesian authorities said they caught the consignment of drugs as it was being transferred between vehicles in a car park in the west of the capital, Jakarta, as reported by the SCMP.
Other suspects were also arrested, including three Hong Kong-based Chinese nationals, one Malaysian and four Indonesians. The suspects could receive the death penalty under Indonesian law, if found guilty of drug trafficking.
Wong was wanted in Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Myanmar and Indonesia.
According to the newspaper, the current number of illicit drug users in Indonesia accounts for nearly 3 percent of the population, equivalent to about 5 million people, compared to 1.5 percent of the population in 2005.
Many of those arrested for drug trafficking in Indonesia originate from Hong Kong, according to local media.