Jakarta – Indonesia's National Narcotics Agency, or BNN, has requested the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology block a website that has been selling marijuana brownies.
The narcotics agency said on Monday it had busted the online operation and arrested three people, including a man identified as IR, who owns a marijuana paraphernalia shop in Blok M, South Jakarta.
The 38-year-old had been selling the brownies through website www.tokohemp.com for six months with the help of two friends, the BNN said.
"BNN does not have the authority to close down the website, we will write a request letter to the Ministry of Information and Technology [sic] who is authorized to do so," said Insp. Gen. Deddy Fauzi Elhakim, deputy head of the BNN, on Tuesday.
Police seized four kilograms of marijuana, 12 boxes of cake flour, cake tins, blenders, mixers, scales, and 15 boxes of chocolate, when they raided IR's home in Tangerang, Banten.
IR told the police he started selling the brownies to help people like himself, who were living with HIV and Hepatitis C, that used marijuana for pain relief.
"I just wanted to treat my HIV and Hepatitis C, I believe consuming marijuana will make me feel better but I'm afraid the police will find out if I sold the marijuana in joints, so I made the brownies," IR said at BNN headquarters in East Jakarta on Monday.
Deddy said the BNN launched an investigation into the online dealers after they received a report that a junior high school student was asleep for two days straight after eating the brownies.
After investigators arrested two customers of www.tokohemp.com at a parking lot in Blok M in February, they were able to gain crucial information that eventually lead to the arrest of of IR and his associates.