Army chief's son still detained over drug bust

JAKARTA (JP): A junior Army officer who was arrested by police during a drug raid in Jakarta is still being detained at the headquarters of his unit, Special Force (Kopassus), according to a police officer who is closely following the case.

The Jakarta Police, which made the bust, however never officially confirmed press reports of the arrest of 24-year old Second Lt. Agus Ishok, who is also the son of Army chief of staff Gen. Subagyo.

"I don't know... I don't know anything about the case anymore. Don't ask me about it. I am not handling the case," Jakarta Police Chief Maj. Gen. Noegroho Djajoesman told reporters.

Asked for confirmation that the suspect was being detained at Kopassus' headquarters, Noegroho retorted: "Don't ask me!"

A senior police officer however confirmed the report, which contradicted earlier speculation that Agus had been handed over to the Military Police for questioning.

"Yes, he is being detained there. But his fate is unknown," said the source who requested anonymity.

"That boy should not have been escorted to his father's home in the first place. He should have been handed over immediately to the Military Police," the officer said.

"Elsewhere in the world, if police caught a soldier doing drugs, they would handle the case. It is only in Indonesia, that we have the Military Police handling such cases," he said with a cynical laugh.

The penalty for drug trafficking in a civilian court is a maximum 15 years jail or a fine of up to Rp 200 million (US$26,666), although few judges have had the courage to give the maximum penalty. It is not immediately known whether such an offense carries a similar penalty in a military court.

Agus was apprehended during a drug raid at a hotel on Aug. 8 by the West Jakarta Police. He and an accomplice were caught in possession of heroin, shabu-shabu and over 6,000 ecstasy pills.

Agus had given a different name at the time of the arrest but when police discovered his real identity during questioning later, he was immediately escorted to his father's house apparently upon Noegroho's orders, according to a police source.

The press caught wind of the arrest when the initial police report and information regarding the handover to Agus's father was leaked.

In subsequent police reports, however, Agus's name has been excised, and Nugroho and his staff has since been forced to deny any knowledge of the arrest.

Lt. Gen. (ret.) Hasnan Habib, former ambassador to the United States, leads the chorus for a thorough and open investigation of the case.

"The Indonesian Military must dare to take responsibility. It must explain to the people what the case was all about," he told reporters on Wednesday. "Whatever the consequence of the case, TNI must explain," he said.

On Wednesday, National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar M. Sianipar called on the courts to mete the maximum penalty for drug traffickers, noting the alarming increase of drug use among the country's youths.

"Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Japan sentence drug traffickers and dealers to death. Meanwhile, in Indonesia, drug dealers get out of jail within months," Togar said. (ylt)