inp.polri.go.id - Jambi. The Jambi Regional Police Special Criminal Investigation Directorate has successfully arrested two gold hoarders with evidence of 1.2 kg of gold from illegal gold mining in the Merangin Regency river, Jambi Province.
"We arrested the two men from Merangin Regency after they were caught carrying 1.2 kilograms of illegal gold which was hidden in a motorbike seat and was about to be taken to a buyer in West Sumatra," said Vice Director of Jambi Regional Police Special Criminal Investigation Directorate, Superintendent Taufik Nurmandiya, in Jambi Tuesday (5/27/2025).
The arrests were made on Saturday, May 24 at around 19:40 pm, in front of the Merangin District Court office after the team received information and conducted an investigation.
Taufik said that the arrests began with information from the public about an illegal gold shipment that would pass through the area.
During the inspection, we found two plastic packages containing pure gold grains weighing around 1.2 kg in the seat of the motorbike ridden by the suspect with the initials of ANR. After being interrogated, the person concerned admitted that the gold came from an illegal mine and would be sent to a prospective buyer in West Sumatra.
From the results of the case development, officers arrested suspect SMR, who is known to be the owner of the gold and the person who ordered ANR to deliver the illicit goods to West Sumatra.
"This gold was collected by suspect SMR from an illegal gold mine in Tabir, Merangin. They admitted that they had done this activity 10 times since early 2025," explained Taufik.
From the suspect's hands, in addition to 1.2 kg of gold, the police confiscated a number of pieces of evidence, including a Honda Supra X motorbike, IDR 2.5 million in cash as travel expenses, and four mobile phones used for communication.
The two perpetrators are now threatened with being charged under Article 161 of Law Number 4 of 2009 concerning Mineral and Coal Mining, as amended by Law Number 2 of 2025, in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code, with a maximum criminal penalty of 5 years in prison and a fine of up to IDR 100 billion.
(ad/inp/pr/rs)
