Pollution case implicates Singaporean

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Police detectives said on Tuesday that they had declared a Singaporean businessman, Lee Choon How, 58, a suspect in a pollution case as his company PT Guru Indonesia, a printing firm located in East Jakarta, had allegedly dumped hazardous waste into the Cipinang river.

"Police have checked the location and took samples from several places near the plant to be examined at the laboratory," said Comr. Ahmad Haydar, chief of the city police detectives for environmental affairs.

At the location, police found that the company failed to provide a waste water processing facility (IPAL), which is required by the city.

"The facility, or IPAL, exists but it doesn't function," said Haydar.

He said that police did not detain Lee, who is also the company's general manager, as they needed time to obtain the results of the laboratory test to prove whether or not the company had polluted the river.

Her said the investigators had been on the case since May 7.

"Now, we are still waiting for the results of the laboratory examination," he said.

Once the results are obtained, police will be ready to dispatch the dossiers to the prosecutors, he said.

According to Haydar, Lee would be charged with the Law No. 23, 1997 on the environment article 43. It carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.