Bank Bali suspects to be freed in 20 days: Police

Bank Bali suspects to be freed in 20 days: Police

JAKARTA (JP): Five suspects detained in the Rp 546 billion
Bank Bali scandal will be freed no later than 20 days from their
arrest on Wednesday, an officer said on Friday.

"Detainment of suspects can be renewed every 20 days. Maximum
(detainment) is 60 days. But the five Bank Bali men detained here
should be released within 20 days... even earlier," National
Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar M. Sianipar said.

He did not provide specific reasons for the police's
apparently more lenient treatment of the four former directors of
Bank Bali and an executive of PT Era Giat Prima (EGP). The
scandal involves the payment of a commission to EGP which some
believe was intended to bankroll President B.J. Habibie's
presidential bid.

Togar only said the suspects were very cooperative.

The bank's former board of directors -- Rudy Ramli, Rusli
Suryadi, Firman Soetjahja and Henri Kurniawan -- and businessman
Djoko S. Chandra of EGP were detained on Wednesday pending
further investigation.

Togar described as "unfounded rumors" the speculation that the
detention of the suspects and the timing of their likely release
were part of plan to keep them out of the public eye during the
presidential election scheduled for the ongoing General Session
of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

"The suspects were a risk to tamper with evidence and to flee
country. The police also needed them for more aggressive
questioning. That's it," Togar said.

"I don't care if the suspects' lawyers swear upon their lives
that their clients won't run off somewhere or tamper with
evidence. This is a police investigation. We'll do it our way."

Setya Novanto, an EGP executive and ruling Golkar Party
official, was also detained on Wednesday but released at midnight
on the grounds that his status as an MPR member prohibited police
from detaining him without the President's written permission.

According to Togar, the National Police sent a letter on
Friday morning to request permission from the President for
Novanto's detention.

Novanto was sworn in with other newly elected MPR members on
Friday.

On progress in revising dossiers of the 10 Bank Bali suspects,
which were returned recently by the Jakarta Prosecutor's Office
due to technicalities, Togar said that the 500-page dossiers
would be returned to prosecutors on Monday.

"We hope, this time, they won't return it to us again," he
said.

In a related development, National Police chief of detectives
Maj. Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said that a letter to request permission
from Habibie to question State Minister of the Empowerment of
State Enterprises Tanri Abeng in relation to the scandal would be
sent next week.

The House Of Representative's special investigative team urged
Habibie last week to immediately suspend senior government
officials allegedly involved in the scandal, including Tanri.

Habibie was adamant that he would not suspend any of his aides
until a court ruling pronounced them guilty.

Da'i also confirmed that Rudy Ramli was ailing.

"I understand that Rudy was sick even before he was detained.
But still he can't receive medical treatment at an overseas
hospital, or any expensive hospitals here. If he wants, he could
be treated at the Kramatjati Police Hospital in East Jakarta. He
is a criminal suspect, after all."

More than 500 Bank Bali employees flocked to the National
Police Headquarters for the second day in a row on Friday in a
show of support for Rudy.

A woman employee who requested anonymity said the police
should not forget Bank Bali's employees.

"We're 12,000 people, and we are all behind Rudy. The police
should never dismiss the 12,000 of us as cowards," she said.
(ylt)