Policemen jailed for leasing guns, desertion

JAKARTA (JP): The city military tribunal sentenced yesterday two policemen to 45 months and three months for leasing guns and desertion.

A panel of three judges, led by Army Col. Imron Anwari, also fired First Sergeant Sujud Pramono, 27, from the police force, for leasing guns.

The judges said in their verdict that Sujud, who, on a previous charge had been jailed for three months for adultery, "no longer deserves to belong to the Indonesian Police Force."

The judges also said that Sujud has acted against his oath and tarnished the image of the Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI).

Sujud, an officer at the city police directorate of logistics, was found guilty of checking out three .38 caliber guns and 180 bullets from the office's store without a permit from his superior.

He then leased the guns, along with the bullets, to 23-year- old university student, Iman Alamin.

Iman was sentenced last year to 16 years in prison for masterminding the 1993 brutal murder of police sergeant Bambang Sumarno in the Kayu Putih area, Central Jakarta.

The motive for Bambang's murder, who was stabbed and burned by Iman and two accomplices on Aug. 26, 1993, was to take the officer's gun. The policeman's body was dumped in a rubber plantation in Cianjur, West Java. During his trial, Alamin was also found guilty of possessing unlicensed guns as well as other lethal weapons.

According to the judges, Sujud made Rp 390,000 (US$175) from leasing the guns to Alamin.

Besides teaching Alamin how to shoot, put the bullets in, and keep the weapons, Sujud was also found guilty of providing a fake police identity card and documents for the guns to Alamin, Judge Imron said.

The defendant also admitted that he had conspired with Alamin to blackmail a video rental store owner and marijuana user in the city, from which they made Rp 1.4 million, the judges said.

"As you have already been jailed for three months for sexual abuse, you, therefore, deserve to be a repeat offender" said Imron.

Sujud will appeal.

Meanwhile, Second Lieutenant Sudaryanto was found guilty of deserting his job as treasurer at city police headquarters for almost 100 days, without permission from his superiors.

According to the judges, Sudaryanto had acted against his oath.

The judges also found that the officer had left his office in order to find out the whereabouts of his friend, to whom he had lent Rp 6 million in cash, which he had taken from his office.

The defendant was afraid that he could not get the money back and decided to leave his job temporarily, in order to find his friend.

He failed to contact his friend and had to repay his debt to the office with his own money.

Sudaryanto said he needed some time to decide whether he would appeal or not.

Yesterday's trials, at city police headquarters, were the third round of trials for a total of 15 policemen from Jakarta and West Java, for various law violations, including theft, document forgery, lending guns, adultery, sexual harassment, taking another wife, acts of violence, corruption and fencing.

The trials, held regularly by Jakarta Military Court II-08 once every three-month, will end today. (bsr)