Inp.polri.go.id - Jakarta.  The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) has exposed a new wave of synthetic drugs disguised as electronic cigarettes following seizures of shipments from Malaysia and France.

BNN Chief Commissioner General Marthinus Hukom said that officers intercepted a package from Malaysia containing 80 milliliters of synthetic cannabis (MDMB-4en-PINACA) and a vape pod bound for Pandeglang, Banten. 

Another package from France contained three kilograms of ketamine powder and 1,860 vape cartridges destined for Bogor, West Java.

“These cases show that the spread of new psychoactive substances with narcotics-like effects is accelerating and increasingly widespread in Indonesia,” he told reporters on Friday (22/8/2025), as quoted by antaranews.com.

BNN, working with the Customs Office, arrested four suspects linked to the smuggling attempts. The ketamine cartridges were intended for distribution as vape liquids.

Authorities have since collected 187 vape samples circulating in Indonesia for testing, with more than 100 confirmed positive for narcotics-related substances. 

Chief Hukom stressed urgent regulation is needed to curb the threat.

(mg/inp/pr/rs)