22 gambling den operators to be tried soon
JAKARTA (JP): City Police Chief Maj. Gen. Mochamad Hindarto said yesterday 22 people believed to be operators of the Pluit, North Jakarta, gambling den will be tried soon.
The suspects were captured along with hundreds of gamblers last month.
"We are trying to complete their dossiers as soon as possible," Hindarto told reporters yesterday.
Speaking during the official opening of a police station in Lippo City, Bekasi, Hindarto said he prioritized the processing of the 22 suspects' dossiers because their offense is more serious that the rest.
The Operation Cleansing team captured 236 people, mostly of Chinese descent and some expatriates, in a raid at a gambling den in the Lucky Plaza building on Jl. Pluit Indah Jaya, North Jakarta, in the early hours of June 11.
The team claimed that the captured were either operators of the gambling den or gamblers. The handling of the case was then transferred to the city police.
Police later freed 56 of the gamblers, including two journalists and two lawyers, saying that they were only onlookers, not taking part in the gambling when the raid was held.
Later police released the remaining gamblers, including five pregnant women, on bail. The 22 people whom police believe to have been operators of the gambling den are still being detained.
Police earlier said among the 22 suspects were Taslim Biyanti, believed to have acted as operator and the "boss" of the gambling den, the owner Kuan Wan, general supervisor Johan, the croupier Safrial, and Willy, the cashier.
Hindarto explained that the police have divided the dossiers of the 22 suspects into eight files.
The first dossier was sent last week to the Jakarta high prosecution office, which will then submit it to the court for trial.
When asked about supervision of the gamblers who were released on bail, the two-star general said police had anticipated the matter and assigned the special babinkamtibmas police patrol to their surveillance.
Main task
The task of these special patrol officers is mainly to keep in touch daily with all residents of the subdistrict where they are placed.
This kind of police officer exists nationwide. They are reportedly quite popular and effective in dealing with criminals in Central Java, where they have been dubbed "Java sheriffs".
Observers say the public is still largely unaware of the existence of the babinkamtibmas in the greater Jakarta area, which limits their effectiveness.
"The babinkamtibmas officers know where the gamblers live and monitor them daily in order to check whether they still live there or whether they have moved to other areas ," said Hindarto.
During the dedication of the police station, the Lippo Group management also presented a car and four motorbikes for use there.
Aside from police officers, the developer employs dozens of security guards, who wear uniforms. They patrol the housing complex around the clock. (jsk)