Soldiers questioned over recent police post attack

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra

The Military Police in Pematang Siantar, North Sumatra, are questioning three Indonesian Military (TNI) soldiers for their alleged role in an attack on the Serbelawan Police subprecinct post on Monday night.

Bukit Barisan Military Command spokesman Lt. Col. Nurdin Sulistiyo said on Wednesday that Second Sgt. Tigor Marbun, First Sgt. Hotma Tunggul Samosir and Chief Sgt. Arif had been arrested for allegedly inciting their comrades to attack the police post.

The attack left an officer, Second Brig. Marudut Panjaitan, severely injured with stab wounds.

Nurdin was quick to add that the soldiers were acting outside of the chain of command.

"It's purely the soldiers' own doing, and there were no orders from their superiors directing them to commit the violence," Nurdin told The Jakarta Post at his office in Medan.

He said Bukit Barisan Military commander Maj. Gen. Idris Gassing, who is responsible for military affairs in North Sumatra, Riau, Jambi and West Sumatra, had vowed to be transparent in dealing with the incident.

The attack followed a security check in Genjing Kahean village conducted by a Military Police officer, First Sgt. Sukamto, on a truck driven by Hotma that was carrying oil palm coconuts. Tigor, who was following Hotma in his own car, intervened as Sukamto was about to ticket the truck after Hotma failed to show the necessary documents for transporting the coconuts.

Hotma claimed that the coconuts belonged to his father-in-law.

When Sukamto insisted that the truck be detained, a group of local people came along to prevent the seizure.

Sukamto called for help from the local police, who managed to disperse the crowd and helped the Military Police officer arrest Tigor and Hotma.

Nurdin said that a TNI soldier called Arif then came to the Military Police post along with some 30 comrades from the 122nd Battalion. By the time the soldiers arrived, rumor had it that their two comrades had already been moved to the Sarbelawan Police subprecinct office.

Duty officer Marudut received the soldiers and tried to explain to them that the police were not detaining their colleagues.

But the angry soldiers ran amok and vandalized the police subprecinct office. Marudut put up a fight but was stabbed by one of the attackers, who also destroyed three motorcycles and two cars belonging to the police.

Nurdin said the Bukit Barisan Military Command would pay for any losses caused.

Spokesman for the North Sumatra Police Adj. Sr. Comr. Amrin Karim said he was shocked by the incident, saying that good relations had long existed between the military and police in the province.