Police arrest warden, inmate over drug abuse

Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang

The police arrested a prison guard and an inmate of the Tangerang Youth Penitentiary late on Wednesday for alleged involvement in drug trafficking inside the prison.

The penitentiary chief Didin Sudirman confirmed on Thursday that one of his guards, Hari Marsono, 40, had been arrested.

"We have long been suspicious of Marsono's involvement in drug trafficking inside the prison...but he always denied the accusation under interrogation," Didin, who is currently on leave, told The Jakarta Post.

Police detectives arrested Marsono directly in front of the prison gate as he was leaving for home at 9 p.m.

The police said they had found hundreds of ecstasy pills in his bag.

Fellow prison guard Pujiono said that after they had arrested Marsono, the police got in the prison and escorted an inmate, identified as Syahrial Pakpahan alias Ucok, from the prison to Tangerang Police Station. "None of Syahrial's belongings were seized as police evidence," he said.

According to the head of the operation Insp. Tri Taufif, Marsono was a known drug courier.

He said Marsono had confessed that he had obtained the drugs from Syahrial, who had just been transferred from the Cipinang penitentiary.

Syahrial has served one year of his three-and-half year prison term for a drug-related crime.

The police said that a man called Ocoy had confessed to buying drugs from Syahril.

Ocoy was arrested on April 7, 2003, in Petamburan area, Central Jakarta. He was found to be in possession of 115 ecstasy pills, 25 grams of shabu shabu (crystal metamphetamine) and one gram of heroin. His trial is being held at the Tangerang District Court.

Tangerang Youth Penitentiary is known for its weak control over drug deals involving inmates. The prison has a maximum capacity of 600, but currently has 1,047 inmates.