Bogus liquor maker gets 9 years in jail

Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang

The Tangerang District Court judge on Thursday sentenced a producer of bogus liquor to nine years jail and ordered him to pay a Rp 20 million (US$2,160) fine, quoting results of a laboratory test that showed that the alcoholic liquor had the potential to cause blindness.

Presiding judge Suprapto told the courtroom that Bong Jhoni Wijaya, alias Biong Pin, 52, had been proven guilty of producing and distributing the potion.

"God forbid if this liquor ever reached the market and was consumed ... it could cause people to go blind," he remarked.

The sentence was one year less than the punishment sought earlier by prosecutors.

Prosecutor Supriati charged the sole defendant under various laws including those relating to health, trademarks, and customs and excise, which carry a maximum punishment of 10 years' imprisonment.

The defendant was arrested on June 26 last year while transporting boxes of his homemade liquor in a minivan from his house in the Poris Indah housing complex in Cipondoh district, Tangerang.

The arrest was made based on a tip-off from Syukri, an executive of PT Semak Industry, which holds the liquor distribution license for Tangerang.

Police confiscated hundreds of bottles of known brands filled with the bogus liquor.

The defendant told the police that he worked together with two friends, identified only as Ajin and Afat, in marketing the liquor. The two are still at large.