'Buntut' coupon sellers arrested
'Buntut' coupon sellers arrested
BOGOR (JP): Local police have arrested seven sellers of judi
buntut coupons in several raids over the past few days, an
officer said.
According to Bogor Police chief Lt. Col. Budi Gunawan, his men
also apprehended an owner of a gambling den and confiscated 40
slot machines.
Gunawan said the seven people arrested in Baranang Siang bus
terminal were employees of coupon agents Tosiba, Sampurna and
Marimas.
"The dossiers of the eight suspects have been handed over to
the Bogor Prosecutor's Office. They will be charged under Article
303 of the Criminal Code," he said.
The article carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail or a
fine of Rp 25 million (US$3,571).
In a related development, the Bogor mayoralty ordered seven
businessmen on Wednesday to stop operating slot machines
following an instruction by West Java Governor Nuriana dated June
24 which orders regents and mayors in the province to abolish
gambling.
The mayoralty's sociopolitical affairs head, E. Rukanda, said
the mayoralty had summoned the seven businessmen to discuss the
matter.
"By today only five of them had promised to stop operating
their slot machines. The remaining two businessmen have yet to
respond to our summons," Rukanda said.
The mayoralty will summon the two gambling owners again, he
said. Police action will be taken against them if they ignore the
summons.
Rukanda said gambling operators located in several areas,
including on Jl. Dewi Sartika and Jl. Sawojajar and the Nyiraja
Parmas and Baranang Siang areas, had been told to close down
their dens.
"If they do not close their dens, we're afraid that residents
will be angry and destroy the premises," Rukanda said.
He appealed to the businessmen, who have allegedly operated
the machines for three months, to change the machines with others
that have no gambling factors.
He reiterated that the mayoralty would abolish all kinds of
gambling, including chess games on which people gamble, and judi
buntut.
He said he received a report that many schoolboys recently
started buying the white gambling coupons.
"We hope that officials can watch the gambling dens,
especially those where many schoolboys participate in gambling,"
Rukanda said.
To eliminate gambling, the mayoralty intends to circulate
memos to neighborhood chiefs advising them that gambling is
prohibited. "We'll call on the public to report to the police if
they find any gambling going on," he added.
Togel or judi buntut is a highly popular game among gamblers
in many towns and villages across the country.
Gamblers place bets on two or four numbers which are announced
every two to three days by their operators. Sources say the
number of operators has proliferated in recent months.
The minimum bet is Rp 1,000 (15 U.S. cents). If two numbers
match, the bettor wins 60 times the bet; the payout is 250 times
the bet for four correct numbers.
Some gambling operators and coupon sellers claim that the
selected numbers are based on numbers from gambling operators in
Singapore.(21/jun)