Forgery gangs serving migrant workers busted<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Police investigators have announced the break-up of a crime
\nsyndicate that sold forged documents to migrant workers seeking
\nto travel abroad. The fraud also implicated Jakarta city
\nimmigration officials.<\/p>\n
\"We have managed to arrest members of three organized-crime
\nsyndicates which have been sending the migrant workers abroad
\nwith illegal documents,\" City Police's Detective Chief, Sr. Comr.
\nBambang Hendarso Danuri, said at a press conference on Friday.<\/p>\n
Bambang said that the first group was led by Benny Siregar,
\n45. The seven-member group was experienced in counterfeiting
\ndocuments.<\/p>\n
Benny was taken into custody after police received reports
\nfrom Arsinna Adiandi Utama, a licensed company which assists
\npeople interested in getting documents for the purpose of
\nbecoming migrant workers.<\/p>\n
The company's allegations were based on its own investigation
\nof a faked immigration document at the behest of a migrant
\nworker.<\/p>\n
In its investigation, police found that Benny, a resident of
\nCondet, East Jakarta, had made the fake documents in cooperation
\nwith Syahrul, an official at the Central Jakarta Immigration
\nOffice.<\/p>\n
The illegal documents, investigators said, had caused
\ndifficulties for many migrant workers, leaving them prone to
\nexploitation and unfair treatment, as they had no legal
\nprotection from the companies which employed them.<\/p>\n
The latest incident occurred early this year in Malaysia,
\nwhen more than 300 Indonesian workers rioted in anger against
\nunfair treatment by their employers.<\/p>\n
The migrant workers who returned to Indonesia were also
\nreportedly exposed to extortions on the way home.<\/p>\n
According to information from the Coordinating Body for
\nIndonesian Workers Placement, Indonesian migrant workers mostly
\ntravel to 25 nations, including Britain and United States. Many
\nothers have gone to their destinations illegally.<\/p>\n
Bambang added that police have arrested Kulwant Singh, a 40-
\nyear-old Indonesian of Indian descent, who leads a group which
\ncounterfeited visa permits and other travel documents.<\/p>\n
Officials also thwarted another group, led by Gunawan, 39,
\nwhich faked financial documents.<\/p>\n
In addition, police also confiscated evidence including some
\nof the faked documents, along with printers and rubber stamps.<\/p>\n
Another detective, Adj. Sr. Comr. Ike Edwin, blamed the lack
\nof coordination between the Ministry of Manpower and
\nTransmigration and the Immigration Office for putting the migrant
\nworkers in a difficult position.<\/p>\n
Ike Edwin said that, when the workers encountered trouble in
\nthe countries where they worked, they often had no rights, or
\nprotection from the Indonesian government.<\/p>\n
Bambang said that police were also tracking down similar
\nsyndicates which sent the migrant workers to South Korea.<\/p>\n
Bambang said that they would be charged mainly with the
\nCriminal Code No. 263 on document forgery, which carries a
\nmaximum punishment of six years in jail.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/forgery-gangs-serving-migrant-workers-busted-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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