Guests Still Present During Hotel Sultan Execution, Police Explain

Jakarta Metropolitan Police have explained why there were still occupants inside Hotel Sultan when the execution process was carried out on Thursday. The Head of Public Relations for Jakarta Metropolitan Police, Senior Commissioner Budi Hermanto, stated that the occupants present in the hotel were guests who had been conditioned to stay there since several days prior to the execution. “So we explain, the people occupying it are people who were conditioned to stay from a few days ago,” Budi said at Hotel Sultan on Thursday. He said that before the execution was carried out today, there were stages that the relevant parties had gone through. “Yes, we ensure that the occupants present are conditioned occupants. We confirm this answer,” he stated.

He also explained that the 69 people detained during the execution process at Hotel Sultan were not employees of the hotel. “For now, those detained are 69 people and they are not employees of the former Hotel Sultan. So they are masses who were mobilised to try to obstruct the asset seizure process at this location,” Budi said. He noted that the number of people detained could potentially increase. Budi said that during the execution process, there were around 500 people occupying Hotel Sultan and refusing the execution to proceed. “Earlier we all saw there were approximately 500 people occupying the object to be executed, and this will certainly be investigated further regarding attempts to obstruct and resist officers who are carrying out their duties,” he said.