Prison escapee nabbed in Sanur

I Wayan Juniarta, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar

A prison inmate, who was supposed to be safely locked up in Bali's Kerobokan penitentiary, was nabbed before dawn on Sunday at a brothel in the Sanur area, Denpasar.

Apparently, the escapee had spent the night with a prostitute. In a strange turn of events, two prison guards were discovered to have not only helped the suspect escape from jail, but also participated in the night's escapade.

Several plainclothes officers from the Denpasar Police Narcotics Unit, who were conducting a routine surveillance operation in the area, spotted the 41-year-old Go Yoe Seng Aka Aseng when he was leaving the brothel.

"The police approached and questioned him. Aseng dodged the questions by claiming that he had finished his prison term. They didn't buy that and contacted their office, asking for the prisoner's data," Narcotics Unit Chief First Insp. Rudi Purwiyanto said here on Sunday afternoon.

During police questioning, Aseng admitted that he escaped with the help of two prison guards, Putu Purna and Putu Wirawan.

"I am doomed. I know it is against the law. I will enter my retirement period in four years and now I made this silly mistake. I am finished and I am ready to suffer the consequences of my actions," Wirawan said.

He cited "humanitarian reasons" as the reason for his conduct, claiming that he felt pity for Aseng and just wanted to give the inmate a small break.

Aseng was sentenced several months ago to a 16-month jail sentence after he was found guilty of possessing 84 grams of shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine) and 74 ecstasy pills. In 1998 he also served an eight-month prison term for a similar crime. (zen)