Ex-police chief suspect in criminal case

JAKARTA: Former city police chief Comr. Gen. Sofjan Jacoeb is among a group of top officers suspected of being involved in the smuggling of luxury cars.

National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said on Thursday the matter was being investigated by a team led by the inspector general of the National Police, Comr. Gen. Ahwil Luthan, Antara reported.

Sofjan, who was the city police chief from May to December 2001, allegedly was involved in the smuggling ring last year, when he was the chief of the South Sulawesi Police. He is also suspected of issuing forged documents for the 11 Mercedes Benz vehicles.

Three of the cars were recently confiscated in Jakarta and two in West Java. It is not known where the remaining vehicles are.

The sticker prices of the vehicles range between US$70,000 and $120,000. All of the vehicles were smuggled into Indonesia through a seaport in the eastern part of the country, before being shipped to Jakarta's Tanjung Priok Port.

Sofjan is currently posted at the National Defense Institute. --JP