Officials believe they can bring Zarima home
Officials believe they can bring Zarima home
JAKARTA (JP): Attorney General Singgih and City Police Chief
Maj. Gen. Hamami Nata expressed yesterday their optimism about
bringing Ecstasy-case fugitive Zarima home from Houston for trial
even though Indonesia and the U.S. have no extradition treaty.
Singgih said diplomatic access would enable Indonesian police
to bring the 24-year-old fugitive to Jakarta for prosecution.
The woman is accused of possessing 29,677 Ecstasy pills. She
escaped during a police escort from the Tangerang police precinct
to Jakarta Police headquarters last August.
Capt. Ade Sutiana, the head of the Tangerang police detectives
who escorted her, was dismissed from his post the next day. ye is
now temporarily employed in an administrative capacity at the
Jakarta Police headquarters.
Zarima was arrested on Tuesday (Jakarta time) by Jakarta
police detectives, in cooperation with a Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI) team, in a supermarket in Houston, U.S.
Speaking before the limited cabinet ministers meeting at
presidential office Bina Graha, Singgih said Zarima's case was
different from that of M. Said, a Garuda pilot who was arrested
by Dutch police at the Schipol airport on Sept. 29 for illegally
carrying 8,000 Ecstasy pills.
Indonesian police failed to have M. Said extradited from
Holland. Reports said he would be tried in Holland soon.
"M. Said allegedly committed the crime in the Netherlands
while Zarima committed the crime in Indonesia," he said.
Meanwhile, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung said he
would instruct the police force to bring the woman back to
Indonesia as soon as all necessary procedures were completed in
the U.S.
Hamami Nata said at the Soekarno-Hatta airport upon his
arrival from an official European visit and a religious visit to
Mecca, that police would be able to take Zarima, alias Zarina,
home whatever the hurdles were.
"I can assure you that we're able to bring the woman back home
soon, hopefully this week," Hamami said.
The public should not be worried about the deportation of
Zarima even though she might have already hired a lawyer to
defend her from being tried in Indonesia.
Hamami said police had worked quite a long time tracing the
fugitive and prepared everything, including the legal aspects for
the arrest.
No problem
Senior advisor to the National Police Force, Gen. (ret)
Awaloedin Djamin, who accompanied Hamami on his visit, guaranteed
the Jakarta police detectives would face no significant problems
in their efforts to bring Zarima back to Indonesia.
"I guarantee that even though we have no extradition treaty
with the U.S.", Awaloedin, a former national police chief said.
"For many years, we've been deporting a large number of
foreigners wanted by their countries for their alleged role in
crimes, why should we have to face problems if we need to get a
criminal we want?" Awaloedin said.
Hamami said Zarima had not changed her appearance.
"She had been there about a month," he said.
Hamami expressed his gratitude to the U.S. authorities,
especially the FBI officers, for their support.
Hamami said Zarima had used a fake passport to leave
Indonesia. "But I still have no idea about where she got the
passport from," he said.
A noted lawyer, who requested anonymity, said on Tuesday that
it would not be easy to bring the woman home for trial.
The lawyer said that things would become more complicated if
Zarima hired a lawyer in the U.S.
Indonesia has no law which explicitly bans the mood-altering
stimulant Ecstasy but possessing, smuggling and trafficking the
pills could be considered a breach of Health Law No. 23/1992. The
law says those found guilty of possessing, smuggling and
trafficking drugs illegally face a maximum 15 years jail term and
a fine of up to Rp 300 million (US$128,200).
Attorney General Singgih said Zarima must be punished harshly.
"She will not only be prosecuted for possessing Ecstasy pills,
but also for escaping police escort. Police have spent much money
to hunt her," Singgih said. (sur/bsr)