Sjahril's arrest extended again for another 30 days

Sjahril's arrest extended again for another 30 days

JAKARTA (JP): The Attorney General's Office extended the
arrest of central bank governor Sjahril Sabirin on Monday for
another 30 days, pending the completion of the investigation into
his involvement in the Bank Bali scandal.

Spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, Yushar Yahya,
told reporters on Friday that the prosecutors' request to extend
the arrest status of Sjahril was approved on Tuesday by the
Central Jakarta District Court.

"We considered that the extension was necessary to prevent the
suspect from fleeing, or destroy evidence or committing similar
crimes," Yushar said, adding that "the investigation of the case
is expected to be accomplished by the end of this month."

The extension, the second one since Sjahril was arrested on
June 21, will take effect from Sunday to Sept. 18.

Sjahril's lawyers filed last week a pretrial lawsuit against
the Attorney General's Office over his arrest status.

Separately, Sjahril's lawyer Muhammad Assegaf blasted the
arrest extension saying there is no urgency for the Attorney
General's Office to detain his client because since his arrest
two months ago Sjahril has only been questioned twice.

"The arrest is more a political measure than a legal one.
Attorney General Marzuki Darusman has become the tool of
President Abdurrahman Wahid who dislikes Pak Sjahril's refusal to
leave his post," Assegaf told The Jakarta Post.

Sjahril was named a suspect in June for violating the central
bank's prudential policy in reimbursing interbank loans to Bank
Bali totaling Rp 546 billion. The loans were guaranteed by the
government.

The team of lawyers representing Sjahril have complained over
the arrest status to the National Ombudsman Commission and filed
a pre-trial lawsuit against Attorney General Marzuki Darusman in
the South Jakarta District Court. The initial hearing will be
held on Tuesday.

Separately, the South Jakarta District Court will issue a
verdict on Aug. 28 in the case of defendant Djoko S. Tjandra,
also charged in the Bank Bali scandal.

The prosecutors have asked the court to sentence the former
director of trading and investment firm, PT Era Giat Prima (EGP),
which helped expedite the bank loans reimbursement, with 18
months in penitentiary and a maximum Rp 30 million fine. (bby)