Joint army-customs patrol finds 116 cannabis plants in Boven Digoel forest
A joint army and customs patrol found a 200-square-metre cannabis field with 116 plants in forest at Km 56, Sesnuk District, Boven Digoel, on 14 June 2023. The army said it did not know the owner and was coordinating with customs and police; the find followed the April arrest of two cannabis couriers.
🇮🇩 Km 56 forest area, Sesnuk District, Boven Digoel Regency, South Papua · Indonesia
- Plants destroyed
- 116
- Hectares
- 0
A joint patrol of the RI–PNG border task force Yonif 725/Woroagi and Merauke
Customs found a cannabis field of about 200 square metres (0.02 hectares) in
forest at Km 56, Sesnuk District, Boven Digoel Regency, South Papua.[1]
Commander Lt Col Inf Syafruddin Mutasidasi said the joint team found the field
while patrolling the forest around Km 56.[1] The patrol took place on
Wednesday 14 June 2023, he said.[1] Officers counted 116 cannabis plants in
the field.[1]
The army said it did not know who owned the plants.[1] The commander said he
was coordinating with Merauke Customs and Boven Digoel police for legal
follow-up.[2] Syafruddin said the field was a serious concern for young
Papuans.[1] He said the task force was still investigating the discovery and
asked the public to help watch for cannabis cultivation.[1]
The discovery came from information developed after the April 2023 arrest of two
cannabis couriers by the task force’s Pos KM 53.[1] The commander said the
joint team with Merauke Customs was formed after that information.[3]
Sources
- Satgas Pamtas Yonif 725 temukan ladang ganja di Papua Selatan. ANTARA News Jateng, 21 June 2023. In Indonesian.
- Ladang Ganja Seluas 200 Meter Persegi Ditemukan di Hutan Boven Digoel. Kompas.com, 15 June 2023. In Indonesian.
- Gagalkan Indikasi Pelanggaran di Tapal Batas, Satgas Yonif 725/Wrg dan Bea Cukai Merauke Temukan Ladang Ganja. TNI Angkatan Darat, 15 June 2023. In Indonesian.
Open questions the AI reported
- The reports do not say whether the 116 plants were uprooted, burned or left in place, or whether anyone was later detained; the task force said it was still investigating.
- The coordinates are for the Sesnuk district centre, not the Km 56 forest site.
- The two people arrested in April 2023 were detained in an earlier, related case and are not counted as arrests in this event.
- Ladang Ganja Seluas 200 Meter Persegi Ditemukan di Hutan Boven Digoel (Kompas.com) could not be opened again to check its quotations (The browser page answered HTTP 403.; archived fallback unavailable (Wayback availability answered HTTP 429). No AI research was started); what it says is as the AI read it.