16 still being questioned over rice delivery orders<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Police are still questioning 16 people,
\nincluding an official of the city's logistics agency (Dolog
\nJaya), for their alleged role in the illegal transaction and
\npossession of rice delivery orders, an official said on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Not revealing the identities of the suspects, city police
\nspokesman Lt. Col. Edward Aritonang said the 16 people were
\napprehended on Friday night at the Dolog Jaya office on Jl.
\nPerintis Kemerdekaan, North Jakarta, by a special police team,
\nwhich was set up to investigate rice distribution violations in
\nthe capital.<\/p>\n
\"They are still being questioned for alleged violations of
\nrice transactions,\" Aritonang told reporters.<\/p>\n
The Dolog Jaya official, he said, is the head of the
\ndistribution section. The remaining 15 people allegedly possessed
\nrice delivery orders but none of their names were found on
\nDolog's official distributors list, he added.<\/p>\n
According to the existing regulations, he said, only those who
\nhold rice delivery orders could purchase rice directly from
\nDolog, whose prices are much cheaper than market prices.<\/p>\n
Police therefore suspect the 15 people currently under
\ninvestigation obtained the delivery orders through illegal
\ntransactions with the official distributors for their own
\nbenefit, he said.<\/p>\n
Besides the illegal possession of the delivery orders, police
\n\"are also investigating whether or not the 15 people are also
\nhoarding rice,\" Aritonang said.<\/p>\n
As in many other parts of the country, the capital has seen
\nthe price of rice skyrocket in the past two months.<\/p>\n
In an attempt to stabilize the price, the city police have
\nbeen assigned to probe the distribution network.<\/p>\n
According to Aritonang, police summoned Dolog Jaya deputy head
\nSaean Ahmad for questioning on Saturday following the
\nconfiscation of 2,280 metric tons of rice belonging to Dolog.<\/p>\n
One thousand nine hundred tons were seized at Sunda Kelapa
\nharbor in North Jakarta as it was being prepared to be exported
\nto Kuching, Malaysia.<\/p>\n
The rice was found at five boats, five containers, five trucks
\nand three warehouses at the harbor.<\/p>\n
The remaining 380 tons were seized from two traders in Bekasi.
\nIt was found they mixed bad quality rice and good quality rice
\nbefore selling it on the open market to gain a greater profit,
\nAritonang said.<\/p>\n
Under police supervision, some 300 tons of the confiscated
\nrice were sold to the public on Sunday at several markets around
\nthe city at the price Rp 2,000 per kilogram, compared to the
\nmarket of price of more than Rp 3,000 per kilogram.<\/p>\n
Aritonang said the city police were also investigating the
\ndiscovery of 80,000 tons of rice belonging to Dolog Jaya which
\nwas kept at a rented warehouse in Pulogadung industrial estate in
\nEast Jakarta.<\/p>\n
\"How could Dolog Jaya keep the rice, which has started to
\nspoil, while many people can hardly afford to buy it at the
\nmoment,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The rice had allegedly been kept at the warehouse for more
\nthan six months, he said.<\/p>\n
Saean Ahmad confirmed on Saturday that the rice was part of
\nDolog's stock.<\/p>\n
The rice was kept at the private warehouse because the Dolog
\nwarehouses in Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta, were already full of
\nimported rice, he said.<\/p>\n
He denied that the rice was hoarded, saying that it could be
\nsold to other areas in the country.<\/p>\n
But Dolog head Ahmad Zawawi told reporters on Saturday that
\nthe stock was only for Jakarta's needs. (jun)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/16-still-being-questioned-over-rice-delivery-orders-1447893297",
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