Borobudur Law and Society Journal

Narcotics trafficking networks in Indonesia increasingly operate through closed and technology-based channels, which makes the investigative strategy of district police units decisive for whether cases are uncovered at all. This study examines how the Sleman Police (Polresta Sleman) uncover narcotics trafficking, which factors support or hinder that work, and what legal limits apply to the techniques used. It is normative-empirical legal research that combines analysis of the Narcotics Law, the Police Law, the 2023 Criminal Code and the 2025 Code of Criminal Procedure with interviews with officers of the Sleman Police Narcotics Unit. Cases are uncovered mainly through repressive measures: intelligence gathering, undercover buying, network development, arrest and investigation, supported by information from the community. Outreach and patrols are preventive and do not themselves uncover offences. Read through Soekanto’s factors of law enforcement, success rests on officers’ competence, coordination and community participation, while limited facilities, a wide jurisdiction and increasingly closed methods of offenders hinder it. Because the study reports no case data, effectiveness cannot be measured. The thin regulation of undercover buying, which requires a written order from a superior, and the duty to channel addicts to rehabilitation set the main legal limits. The study recommends documented authorisation of undercover operations, outcome indicators and a structured channel for community information.