Jakarta police chief declares war against organized crime
JAKARTA (JP): Jakarta Police are determined to crush the growing number of gangsters and racketeers whose methods of operation are similar to those used by notorious organized crime groups.
"Real organized crime has yet to be found in the city, but we have uncovered a growing number of people and gangs who commit crimes using modus operandi similar to those adopted by foreign organized crime syndicates," Jakarta Police Chief Maj. Gen. Mochammad Hindarto told reporters yesterday.
These people, Hindarto said, mostly run their businesses illegally, ranging from gambling, prostitution, extortion to drug dealing, behind the cover of legitimate businesses, using various types of scare tactics, including kidnapping. "There's no place for them in the city and we have to take immediate action to stop these people before it escalates."
Hindarto made the remarks at the installation of Lt. Col. Timbul Sianturi as the new head of Tanjung Priok port police, replacing Lt. Col. Murawi Effendi.
According to him, these people belong to a well-organized network and can easily earn abundant amounts of money in a short period of time even though they start only with a very limited amount of capital.
Moreover these people always try to collude with officers and politicians of both low and high rank, to back up the operations of their illegal businesses, Hindarto said.
"They, for instance, have special agents assigned to `contact' senior members of the police force and the attorney general's office," he said, adding that such activities rarely are reported to the police.
"The number of such unregistered crimes is quite high because victims are afraid to go to the police," he said.
Luckily, "Pak Hendro (the City Military Commander) and I have the full support of our superiors in blocking the action of these people," he explained but refused to elaborate.
He said city authorities have started their operation against prostitution and gambling groups which are believed to be applying organized crime methods.
Hartono - Yorrys
Over the past few months police in Jakarta have made remarkable breakthroughs with the arrests of two "untouchable" figures, an infamous pimp of high-class call girls, and an executive of the powerful Pemuda Pancasila youth organization.
Hartono Setyawan, 42, one of the most notorious pimps in the country, was arrested in his mansion in South Jakarta on July 27 and is now being tried at the local district court on charges of allegedly running an illicit prostitution business over the last five years.
Three days later the police also nabbed Yorrys Raweyai, the day-to-day chairman of Pemuda Pancasila, in a gambling den in West Jakarta. He is being tried at the local court for his alleged role in the gambling.
On Monday, Hindarto announced that Yorrys was arrested for another case: for the torture of a servant in September last year. The servant was believed to have kidnapped and killed the son of Pemuda Pancasila's executive.
The servant suffered serious wounds to his abdomen and his right ear was severed. He later died in police custody after being handed over by Yorrys and his friends.
"We have to stop these prostitution and gambling businesses first in a bid to stop them from spreading to other sectors," Hindarto reiterated yesterday.
According to Hindarto, the target of operations to block the presence of organized crime in the city are companies which have no significant activities but are able to register high profits. (bsr)