West Sumatra Police Vow to Eradicate Illegal Mining
West Sumatra Regional Police (Polda Sumbar) have demonstrated a firm commitment to eradicating illegal practices within their jurisdiction. The Special Criminal Investigation Directorate (Ditreskrimsus) of Polda Sumbar has affirmed that it will not hesitate to take stern action against any form of unlicensed mining (PETI) activity that damages the environment and harms the state.
The statement was delivered at a press conference on the disclosure of an unlicensed mining case, held at Polda Sumbar headquarters on Wednesday (29/7).
The press conference was led directly by the Director of Special Criminal Investigation (Dirreskrimsus) of Polda Sumbar, Police Grand Commissioner Andry Kurniawan, accompanied by Head of Public Relations Police Grand Commissioner Susmelawati Rosya, Head of Sub-Directorate IV Police Lieutenant Colonel Okta Rahmansyah, Head of Sub-Directorate V Police Commissioner Citra Henita, and Head of the Public Information Sub-Division Police Commissioner Adhi Jais.
In his remarks, Andry Kurniawan stressed that the directorate is not treating this priority case lightly. Firm enforcement in the field will continue, given that PETI activities have a massively detrimental impact on environmental sustainability.
“Are we serious? The Special Criminal Investigation Directorate will not hesitate to take enforcement action in the field against PETI activities in West Sumatra, because these clearly cause great losses and damage the environment,” asserted Andry Kurniawan.
Regarding the perpetrators’ network, police currently hold several key pieces of information, including the identities of those acting as collectors or receivers of the illegally mined materials. An in-depth investigation is under way to dismantle this criminal chain thoroughly.
“Of course, during the investigation we will probe deeper into who receives the materials, who sells them, and so on. The role of each perpetrator will be developed further as the case progresses,” he added.
He also assured that the investigative commitment extends to handling other priority cases, such as the eradication of online gambling in West Sumatra.
Adding to the statement, Head of Public Relations of Polda Sumbar, Susmelawati Rosya, emphasised that the disclosure of the unlicensed mining case is a concrete manifestation of the commitment and direct instructions of the regional police chief.
“This is a real commitment from the Chief of Regional Police to conduct investigations and firm enforcement against various forms of legal violations in West Sumatra, including unlicensed mining cases that have drawn public attention,” Susmelawati Rosya told the media.
Polda Sumbar urged the public to play an active role by reporting any illegal activities in their vicinity, in order to protect the environment and uphold the rule of law in West Sumatra.