Over 300 hoodlums detained for alleged crimes
Over 300 hoodlums detained for alleged crimes
JAKARTA (JP): City Police have detained 307 of the 5,340
street hoodlums arrested in their massive on-going operation for
alleged involvement in crime.
According to a deputy of the City Police chief, Brig. Gen.
Hamami Nata, the suspects are facing a variety of charges,
including illegal possession of weapons, drugs, and assault.
"All dossiers of their cases are expected to be completed and
handed over to the prosecutor's offices next week," said the one-
star general.
The completion of the dossiers would, however, depend totally
on the work of the eight heads of the police precincts in the
city, he said.
According to Hamami, the street hoodlums currently held have
been apprehended since the start of the police's ongoing
operation against street criminals, codenamed Operasi Kilat Jaya
'95, on March 1.
Those not found to have been involved in crime have been
released, he said.
Between March 9 and March 21, North Jakarta police alone
arrested a total of 231 street hoodlums suspected of being
involved in crime.
"Of that number, only three cases were handed over to the
local prosecutor's office," head of the precinct, Lt. Col. Edi
Darnadi, told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
A local court in Tangerang, 30 kilometers west of Jakarta, has
already tried eight out of 204 suspects arrested by the local
police.
The eight people, who were sentenced to three days' jail and
fined Rp 500 (23 U.S. cents) each, were found guilty of illegally
controlling the flow of traffic at several intersections in
Tangerang.
The number of hoodlums arrested this month was substantially
higher than the 700 arrested last month, according to police
data. Some of the 700 hoodlums arrested have been sentenced to
prison terms of between three months and two years, after being
convicted of various crimes.
Despite police claims that the current operation is routine,
it is widely believed that the massive scale of the campaign is a
response to an attack on two police officers on March 6 at the
Blok M shopping area, which resulted in the death of one of the
officers.
In the incident, one the 10 youths suspected to be involved
was shot dead by police detectives. Police said that the suspect
had been trying to escape from custody.
A number of other suspected street hoodlums have been shot
dead during the current operation, prompting some members of the
public to question the stated objectives of the operation.
National Police Chief, Gen. Banurusman Astrosemitro, has
insisted that the operation has nothing to do with the Blok M
incident.
"The shooting (of the suspected criminals) is not revenge, but
we had no alternative because they tried to attack our officers,"
he told members of the House of Representatives in a hearing on
Wednesday.
The operation against street criminals is being carried out
nation wide. (bsr)