Police raid discotheques, illegal gambling dens<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): More than 200 people, including five Armed
\nForces personnel, were arrested in raids on nightspots and
\nillicit gambling dens in West and Central Jakarta over the
\nweekend.<\/p>\n
The police confiscated Rp 23.4 million (US$9,693) and
\ngambling paraphernalia including pin ball machines from the
\nillegal gambling houses. And an FN45 gun loaded with seven
\nbullets, 35 marijuana cigarettes, 39 Ecstasy pills and five
\ncapsules believed to contain Ecstasy powder, from the night
\nspots.<\/p>\n
The operations, code-named Walet and Kilat Jaya, involved 260
\npolice officers from various units, including the Mobile
\nBrigades, detectives, and Speed Reaction Units.<\/p>\n
Operation Walet started at 9:00 p.m. Friday when 105 officers
\nbusted three illicit gambling dens on Jl. Mangga Besar Raya, Jl.
\nGajah Mada, and the Raja Mas discotheque on Jl. Hayam Wuruk in
\nWest Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The team confiscated some Rp 10 million from the 171 gamblers
\narrested at the five locations, and seized gambling
\nparaphernalia.<\/p>\n
Unofficial sources said some of those arrested had nothing to
\ndo with the illegal businesses. They had just stopped by the
\ngambling dens.<\/p>\n
The Kilat Jaya Operation started at around midnight Friday,
\nwith 155 officers simultaneously busting the Lido Oriental
\nExecutive, Kaliber, Stardust, and the Puja Siera discotheques in
\nWest and Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The leader of the operation, Capt. A.H. Gani, said the
\noperation was to curb the circulation of drugs at entertainment
\ncenters.<\/p>\n
The operation ended at dawn Saturday with 45 people, including
\n15 women and five military personnel, arrested.<\/p>\n
The Lido discotheque, on the sixth floor of the Ciputra Hotel,
\nWest Jakarta, was the first nightspot busted in the operation.<\/p>\n
Eleven of the 45 people arrested were Lido customers,
\nallegedly found possessing drugs and hand-rolled marijuana
\ncigarettes. They were taken to City Police headquarters for
\nfurther questioning.<\/p>\n
Four of the five military personnel arrested by the police
\nwere at the Lido. The FN45 hand-gun was seized from one of the
\nfour.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Military Commander Maj. Gen. Sutiyoso has vowed to
\ntake stern action against military personnel caught frequenting
\nand working for entertainment centers.<\/p>\n
A waiter at Lido complained about the raid, saying it could
\ninflict financial losses on the waiters and waitresses.<\/p>\n
\"Many people left their tables during the police search. If
\nthey are taken away by the officers or if they leave to escape
\nthe raid, who will pay for what they ordered? We, the waiters and
\nwaitresses have to take responsibility for the bills,\" the waiter
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Among the Lido customers arrested were a Taiwanese couple
\nfound with four Ecstasy pills.<\/p>\n
Other foreigners were arrested during the next raid on Kaliber
\ndiscotheque on Jl. Kali Besar Barat, West Jakarta.<\/p>\n
A Japanese man and a Singaporean woman were arrested for
\nallegedly possessing three marijuana cigarettes.<\/p>\n
The couple denied it, saying; \"What is this? How can the
\npolice say the cigarettes were ours just because they found them
\non the floor near our table?,\" the Japanese man said.<\/p>\n
At least two men and two women were arrested in the raid on
\nStardust discotheque on Jl. Pintu Besar Selatan. The raid on Puja
\nSiera Pub and Discotheque on Jl. Gajah Mada downtown resulted in
\nthe arrest of a woman who tried to hide drugs in her underwear.<\/p>\n
Saturday's operations were the follow up of a recent series of
\nnightspot busts by the military in its efforts to curb the spread
\nof drugs.<\/p>\n
Owners of nightspots have complained about the raids, saying
\nthey deter visitors and hurt their businesses. (04)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/police-raid-discotheques-illegal-gambling-dens-1447893297",
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