Police probe not concentrated on palace staff

JAKARTA (JP): City police detectives chief Col. Alex Bambang Riatmodjo insisted on Monday that his office has no plan at all to summon anybody from the Presidential Palace for questioning in connection with the still mysterious Rp 35 billion Bulog scam.

"We have no plans to call anybody from the palace. We're concentrating all our troops on getting Suwondo. I'm sure that he's still somewhere in Jakarta," he said.

Alex, who has been promoted as the new Bandung Police chief in West Java, was referring to a masseur of President Abdurrahman Wahid who's still missing since the beginning of the police investigation over the fund of the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) workers foundation, Yanatera.

Suwondo, along with Bulog deputy chief Sapuan and Yanatera chairman Mulyono, has been named by the police as one of the prime suspects in the high-profile scam.

President Abdurrahman, or Gus Dur, has admitted he asked about the possibility of taking Bulog money to pay for projects in the troubled Aceh province, but said he never went ahead with the idea.

On Monday, Suwondo's wife, Teti Sunarti, appeared at the city police headquarters to meet the police summon for questioning.

To reporters, Teti said that she had no idea of the whereabouts of Suwondo.

Since the scandal became media headlines, her husband had only contacted her twice.

Teti, who identified herself as an entrepreneur, did not disclose the substance of the conversation or whether Suwondo, also a businessman, revealed the place he was calling from at the time.

Officer Alex said Teti was interrogated based on the police finding that she cashed a Rp 10 billion cheque, number 530603, issued by Bank Bukopin at the Pulomas office of Bank Mandiri in East Jakarta on Jan. 20.

On Jan. 21, Suwondo signed a stamped document stating that he had officially received four Bukopin cheques totaling Rp 35 billion from the Yanatera foundation, Alex said.

In the document, Suwondo said he received cheque number 514425 worth Rp 5 billion and number 530601 worth Rp 5 billion on Jan 13, and cheque number 530603 worth Rp 10 billion and number 530604 worth Rp 15 billion on Jan 20.

Alex added that his men had combed three of Suwondo's homes in the mountainous resort of Puncak (West Java), in Kelapa Gading (North Jakarta), and in Kemang (South Jakarta) but found no traces of Suwondo.

"Still, it's my gut feeling that Suwondo is still in Jakarta, and God Willing, we should get him within the week," he said.

Police on Monday also questioned Deputy Chairman of the Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle's (PDI Perjuangan's) Research & Development division, Suko Sudarso, a suspect in the scam.

After the questioning late in the afternoon, Suko told reporters that police investigators have ordered him to come back again for the same purposes on Tuesday along with his bank accounts.

"Tomorrow I have to bring my bank account books since the police want to know the flow of funds to my account," Suko said.

Suko is being questioned on his knowledge of the scam after withdrawing Rp 15 billion from the Citibank office on Jl. Sudirman in South Jakarta.

According to earlier media reports, Suko admitted that the Rp 15 billion he had withdrawn was not his money.

"It belongs to Hendrie Arioseno, a friend of mine who did not want to put that money into his Bank Bali clearing account, since the bank has its own share of problems," Suko said, as quoted in statements taken by the nongovernmental organization Government Watch (Gowa), in its interview with Suko.

Separately, Alex said he had summoned Hendrie to speak on behalf of his friend, but Hendrie too had not shown up at the city police headquarters.

Quoting Suko, Gowa said that the Rp 15 billion was payment for the purchase of 200 hectares of land in South Cianjur, West Java, which was to be used by Suwondo as a garden house.

The purchase of the land took place on Jan. 5 this year.

Earlier, Sapuan's lawyer, Isnul Tandjung, said his client agreed to disburse the Rp 35 billion fund from Yanatera after he was directly asked to by Gus Dur during a meeting.

The money was then sent to Suwondo, who put up his 200-hectare land in South Cianjur as collateral over the fund, which was said to be a loan, the lawyer said.

"But, Sapuan so far only holds land certificates for 80 hectares," Isnul said.

Officer Alex said: "How is it possible that Suwondo holds those land certificates, when he had not yet paid for the land? The promissory note on the collateral was signed on Jan. 12 and the Rp 15 billion itself was cashed only on Jan. 20," Alex said.

"Is it possible, that Hendrie would allow his unpaid land, to be put up as collateral?" (ylt)