A Malaysian pilot faces the death penalty in Indonesia after authorities accused him of attempting to smuggle more than 70,000 ecstasy pills into the country, officials said on Friday.
The 39-year-old pilot, identified only by his initials MSO, was arrested on Wednesday at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport shortly after arriving on a flight from Kuala Lumpur.
Airport customs officials said the flight number indicated he was flying a Malaysia Airlines aircraft, though the airline has not publicly identified the pilot.
Authorities said a urine test returned positive results for methamphetamine, MDMA and cocaine.
"The results of his urine test came back positive for meth, MDMA, and cocaine. So, at the time of the flight, he was under the influence," airport customs official Hengky Tomuan Parlindungan Aritonang told reporters.
"What concerns all of us is that this person's profession is a pilot, and at the time he arrived, he had just flown that plane from Kuala Lumpur to Indonesia," he added.
Customs officers said they found 14 bags containing more than 70,000 ecstasy pills in the pilot's checked luggage, along with four grams of methamphetamine in his hand luggage, which investigators believe was intended for personal use.
Authorities said the suspect had likely expected to pass through a dedicated customs lane for flight crew but was subjected to the same screening procedures as other travellers.
Death penalty
Investigators said the pilot admitted this was his third attempt to smuggle drugs, including two operations into Indonesia and one in Malaysia.
Police suspect he is part of an international drug trafficking network and have charged him with narcotics smuggling.
The pilot told investigators he had been promised 50,000 Malaysian ringgit (about $12,000) to deliver the drugs in Jakarta.
Under Indonesian law, he faces the death penalty or life imprisonment if convicted.
Malaysia Airlines launches review
Malaysia Airlines said it was treating the allegations seriously and had launched an internal review.
"The safety and security of our passengers and crew remain our highest priority," the airline said, adding that it would fully cooperate with Indonesian authorities.
Indonesia has some of the world's toughest anti-drug laws, including capital punishment for traffickers, although it has observed a moratorium on executions in recent years.
The country last carried out executions for drug offences in 2016, when four people, including three Nigerian nationals, were executed by firing squad.
Foreign nationals continue to feature prominently among those convicted of drug trafficking in Indonesia. In March, two British men were sentenced to nine and 11 years in prison for smuggling cocaine into Bali, while in June authorities arrested two Russian nationals accused of attempting to bring nearly eight kilograms of hashish onto the island.
