TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Tasikmalaya Resort Police, West Java, raided two illegal storehouses and a wood processing factory in Gunung Kalong Village, Cibeureum and Jl. Letnan Harun, Indihiang district last Thursday. The teak woods (Tecona grandis) in the factory is believed to be obtained from illegal logging in the land belong to state-owned forestry company Perum Perhutani,Tasikmalaya Administrator in Cikalong region.
According to the Police Adjunct Senior Commissioner Noffan Widyayoko, the police had seized about 50 cubic logs in the Cibeureum storehouse and 200 cubic of logs and furniture in Indihiang. Two guards of the storehouses have been brought to the police headquarter for further investigation.
Noffan explained that the police had stopped three trucks loaded with firewood from entering Tasikmalaya city. After an inspection, the trucks were also loaded with the teak woods. "The firewoods are only a way to cover the teak woods," he said.
The logs, Noffan continued, were taken from Wahana Bakti Forest, or the protected forest in Cikalong. "Cut off straight from Wahana Bakti and transported to Tasikmalaya to be processed into furniture," he added.
CANDRA NUGRAHA