REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, CIBINONG -- The Bogor Police have discovered a 500-square-meter Cathinone field hidden behind a villa in Citeko Village, Cisarua sub-district, Puncak, West Java, which is believed to have been there for over a year.

"We have conducted an investigation for a week, and surveillance has revealed the existence of this Cathinone field," noted AKP Yuni Purwanti, the head of the Bogor Police Narcotics Unit, here, Wednesday (6/5).

The police officer stated that about 600 Cathinone plants are estimated to have been grown for more than a year.

The police are still investigating the owner of the field bearing the plants classified as class A psychotropic crops, Yuni said.

"We have only questioned the villa's caretaker Iskandar as part of the initial investigation," Yuni added.

Following the discovery of a Cathinone field in Cisarua area, the West Java Police Chief Inspector General Muhammad Irawan gave instructions to destroy hundreds of Cathinone plants and issued an appeal to not plant psychotropic crops.

Earlier, on February 2013, the Bogor Police discovered three hectares of Cath fields in Cisarua.

Cathinone drug came into the spotlight after an Indonesian television personality Raffi Ahmad was arrested for consuming the drug in 2013.

Currently, the use of Cathinone is spreading in Cisarua, Puncak area, as it is commonly consumed by tourists from the Middle East where they consider that the plant contains some natural ingredients to boost vitality.

Based on Police information, Cathinone is derived from "Semka Catha edulis" plant, which has a chemical substance similar to amphetamine drugs that can affect the nervous system.

According to the Minister of Health Regulation No. 13 of 2014, Cathinone is listed as a group 1 drug substance.

The Cathinone plant is abundantly grown in African areas such as Egypt, Somalia, Ethiopia, and partly in the Arab region such as Yemen and its surrounding areas.

"Cathinone induces effects similar to that of Ecstasy pills," said Yuni.

The Cathinone plant has been widely grown in Puncak, Bogor, since 1992, as several Arabs residing in the area deliberately planted them for consumption.

Local residents were then attracted to cultivate this crop following high demand, and the selling price is also high.

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