1-star general may be charged with bribery

1-star general may be charged with bribery

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said on Wednesday he
would not rule out the possibility of pressing forward with
bribery charges against Brig. Gen. Ismoko, which the police
disciplinary commission said were not proven.

The commission on Tuesday only found Ismoko guilty of "giving
special treatment" to Adrian Waworuntu, a key suspect in the Rp
1.7 trillion (US$187 million) Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI)
scandal, in which Ismoko was the lead investigator.

In what was seen by many as lenient punishment, the commission
suspended the one-star general for one year as the National
Police operations chief for "preferential treatment in favor of
Adrian", which led to the suspect's escape abroad, despite a
travel ban.

Ismoko was, however, cleared of the much more controversial
charge that he took bribes from Adrian, who is currently
imprisoned at Cipinang Penitentiary here after being recaptured
in Medan, North Sumatra last year.

Da'i defended the disciplinary commission's decision to punish
Ismoko by making him non-active for a year, but he did say it
seemed a bit lenient.

"The disciplinary hearing has made its decision. That's
that," he told journalists after attending a Cabinet meeting.

However, Da'i said he would allow police investigators to
further probe the bribery allegations against Ismoko.

It was up to the investigators whether to consider the case a
violation of the code of ethics or the law, he added.

"There are still other options if the people are not satisfied
(with the disciplinary commission's verdict). The case is not
over yet," Da'i asserted.

He made the statement as anticorruption activists strongly
criticized the punishment for Ismoko.

The critics urged the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK)
to investigate the case against the brigadier general, saying
that he should have been charged under the criminal law for
corruption.

At the disciplinary hearing presided over by National Police
deputy chief Comr. Gen. Adang Dorodjatun, Ismoko had been accused
of violating three articles in the police code of ethics.

The first was for preferential treatment of suspects in the
BNI fraud investigation. The second was for bribery, in the form
of a laptop computer, a cellular phone, a television set and
money -- one payment of US$20,000 and another Rp500 million --
which he was alleged to have received from Adrian. The third was
for stalling to give Adrian time to escape before placing him in
the custody of the prosecutors' office.

Adrian had managed to flee to the United States despite a
travel ban imposed on him, and there were strong suspicions that
high-ranking officers and bureaucrats were involved in abetting
his escape. Some of the other suspects from Ismoko's
investigation team have been detained by the police for allegedly
taking smaller bribes, while others have been cleared of any
wrongdoing.