Sahroni Urges Police to Shoot Robbers on Sight

Ahmad Sahroni, deputy chairman of Indonesia’s House of Representatives Commission III, proposed that police take firm action against street robbery gangs, whose cases have again attracted attention. Sahroni even urged that police should not hesitate to shoot on the spot the perpetrators. “This is also a concern, because this is not limited to a particular area, for instance Makassar. I have already told them to act to shoot on sight,” Sahroni said at the parliamentary complex on Monday, 18 May.

He made the remarks in response to the move by Polda Metro Jaya, which had just formed a special team to tackle begal in the Jabodetabek region. He supported the police’s move to provide a sense of security to the public. However, he proposed that similar steps be taken by other regional police forces (Polda).

“This is very good because it provides a sense of safety and comfort to residents wherever they are. So I say this: all Polda should respond to this with decisive action, namely shoot on sight,” he said.

Polda Metro Jaya has formed a pursuit team to eradicate the street crime that has unsettled the public. Director of General Criminal Investigation of Polda Metro Jaya, Kombes Pol. Iman Imanuddin, said the formation of the special team was because street crime not only causes material losses but also endangers victims’ lives.

He explained that the pursuit team would be stationed at several vulnerable points and operate 24 hours a day to ensure public safety and security. “Our team, both at the level of polsek, polres, and the Directorate of General Criminal Investigation, will be deployed across all jurisdiction of Polda Metro Jaya,” Iman said at a press conference on Friday (15 May).