Extortion allegations queried
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Internal affairs officers from the Jakarta Police are questioning the head of the Pasanggrahan Police subprecinct, Comr. Sudiyono, over allegations he extorted Rp 30 million (US$3,000) from a suspect in a case he was handling.
Internal affairs chief Sr. Comr. Anwaruddin said that as of Wednesday his officers were still questioning Sudiyono over the allegations he extorted money from a man identified only as Julius.
"We are still investigating the case. We are questioning him. However, we have not declared him a suspect because we are still trying to determine whether there is sufficient evidence," Anwaruddin told The Jakarta Post.
He promised that Sudiyono would be placed under arrest if sufficient evidence was found to warrant criminal charges.
Anwaruddin said Julius, a suspect in an ongoing criminal case, filed a complaint last week saying Sudiyono demanded money in exchange for dropping the case.
Two other officers, identified as First Insp. Syamsuddin and Second Adj. Insp. P. Daulay, have also been questioned in connection with the case.
City police spokesman Sr. Comr. I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana criticized the media for focusing on this case, saying extortion was common in other government institutions. He accused the media of being biased against the police.
"There is nothing special here. It only became a big case because those reporting on it have a prejudice against the police," he said.
Legal and social observers agreed that this case was not special, saying this kind of extortion happened frequently because of a lack of control over police officers.
Earlier, three police officers, including a commissioner, were arrested and charged with extorting Rp 64 million from a Japanese businessman.
The three officers, two from National Police Headquarters and the third from Jakarta Police Headquarters, were charged with the extortion of a 56-year-old Japanese national. The officers reportedly did a routine stop on the Japanese man and threatened to put him in jail unless he paid them Rp 100 million because he was not carrying his passport.