The pilot tested positive for meth, MDMA and cocaine after his arrest at the airport, meaning he was under the influence when he was flying
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenAgence France-PressePublished: 3:01pm, 31 Jul 2026A Malaysian pilot who tested positive for meth, MDMA, and cocaine after flying a passenger plane to Indonesia risked the death penalty for allegedly smuggling more than 70,000 Ecstasy tablets in his suitcase, officials said on Friday.The 39-year-old pilot, identified only by his initials, MSO, was arrested on Wednesday at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport shortly after arriving from Kuala Lumpur.
“The results of his urine test came back positive for meth, MDMA, and cocaine. So, at the time of the flight, he was under the influence,” Hengky Tomuan Parlindungan Aritonang, an official at the airport customs office, told reporters in the Indonesian capital.
“What concerns all of us is that this person’s profession is a pilot, and at the time he arrived, he had just flown that plane from Kuala Lumpur to Indonesia.”
Customs officials found 14 bags of Ecstasy – more than 70,000 pills – in the pilot’s suitcase, and four grams (0.14 oz) of meth, thought to be for personal use, in his hand luggage.
