The Modus Operandi of Lobster Seed Smuggling

· 5 minutes read

For about a year, IA has often reported activities of lobster fry smuggling in his village in Nipah Panjang district, East Tanjung Jabung regency, Jambi, to the local office of the Fish Quarantine and Fishery Quality Control Agency.

He was upset that since the opening of an access road to Nipah Panjang seven years ago, his village had been used as a transit area for drugs and lobster seeds. The man stepped back when we asked him about the smuggling of lobster seeds through traditional ports, which are known as “rat ports” used by the local people to birth their boats.

He was afraid there were some people listening to the conversation. "We must be very careful talking about the illegal lobsters. There is a mafia out there,” he whispered in a thick Jambi Malay accent.

In mid-May, Kompas met IA at one of the traditional ports in Nipah Panjang. As he felt insecure, he left. "There are two people watching us from another boat. If I make a mistake, I can get into trouble,” he whispered, while promising to meet again.

Nipah Panjang is 120 kilometers from Jambi city. The village can be accessed through a paved road with a width of 8 meters. Through the road, the smuggled goods are taken into the “rat ports” along the river in Nipah Panjang village.

One of the methods to transport the lobster seeds is to use the traditional ports built by the local people to transport coconuts. Such kinds of ports are spread along the river.

Along the east coast from Jambi to Riau, there are many rivers that crisscross each other before they reach the sea. Local people call it a ditch. Many people build a small dock in the river behind their houses or coconut storages.

Lobster seeds are usually shipped to the eastern sea waters of Jambi. In the middle of the sea, the lobster seeds are then moved to a speed boat with an engine capacity of 800-1,000 horsepower and a speed of 50 knots (92 km per hour).

As a fisherman, IA knew exactly that the smuggled lobster seeds did not originate in Jambi, but in Java. According to a former smuggler in Kuala Tungkal, Jambi, identified only as IN, the lobster seeds were smuggled into neighboring countries.

In the past, I smuggled lobster seeds 36 times. I never got caught.

In 2017, IN actively smuggled lobster seeds out to sea. Now, IN helps the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry as an informant. "In the past, I smuggled lobster seeds 36 times. I never got caught,” he said.

“Everything was well planned and many friends were involved. For example, if this area is guarded, we will run to another island," he said. For a fee of Rp 5 million (US$352), he transported the lobster seeds from his house on the riverbank, then took them to Batam. IN only used a pompong (small boat). "In Batam, a speed boat with 800 horsepower was waiting to transport the lobster seeds abroad," he said.

Disconnected

From the searches in Cikahuripan village, Cisolok, Sukabumi regency, West Java, where lobster seeds were collected after being caught from Indonesian waters, it was learned that smuggling was controlled by a mafia abroad through local collectors.

In mid-May, Cikahuripan fishermen traveled to the waters of the Indian Ocean around Ujung Genteng, 100 kilometers to the east of Cisolok, to catch lobster seeds. At that time, there are more lobster eggs being hatched there than around Cisolok.

ED, who worked as a driver of the lobster seed collector in Cikahuripan, known as JD, also joined the trip to Ujung Genteng. He transported the lobster seeds caught by Cikahuripan fishermen. The payment was Rp 200,000 for the lobster seed transportation.

TS, ED\'s wife, revealed that her husband gave the lobster seeds to JD as soon as he arrived at Cikahuripan. The lobster seeds were kept at JD’s house in aquariums filled with oxygen-added sea water. After being refreshed for several hours, the lobster seeds were transported to Sumatra by different cars. "Other people were transporting the lobster seeds," she said.

TS knew much about the intricacies of lobster seed smuggling because his husbands and children were involved. One of his children, DL, spent a year in Tangerang prison after being caught carrying 125,000 lobster seeds worth Rp 500 million.

Refreshed

During the trip, the smuggled lobster seeds were refreshed in every transit location. In Jambi city, a lobster ship refresher facility was found. It was established and operated by a network of smugglers from abroad.

Four people involved in the network were arrested by the Jambi water and air police directorate (Ditpolairud), last May.

To refresh the lobster seeds, the network was assisted by AN, a resident of Lampung. In communicating, the foreigners were helped by two Chinese translators from Riau. Four people involved in the network were arrested by the Jambi water and air police directorate (Ditpolairud), last May.

The commander for the sub directorate for law enforcement at the Ditpolairud in Jambi, commissioner Wadi Sabani, said the Jambi area was a favorite route for smugglers because there were many "rat ports" and it was not far from Batam waters.

Smugglers need to refresh the lobster seeds in every transit location so that the shrimp do not die on the trip and are still healthy when they arrive in the destination country. (NIA/ADY/MDN/ITA

Editor:

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