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)