WHEREABOUTS OF DRUG CASE QUESTIONED

JAKARTA (JP): A senior Jakarta Police detective questioned the whereabouts
of a three-month old drug case allegedly concerning an offense committed by
a member of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) which is currently being
handled by the city Military Police.

Second Lt. Agus Isrok (Kopassus personnel) was apprehended on Aug. 8 for
reportedly consuming and possessing drugs.

The complete dossier on Agus, along with a packet of shabu-shabu (crystal
methamphetamine) found in Agus's trousers when he was caught, was handed
over to the military police on Aug. 12. That's nearly three months ago,"
the officer, who requested anonymity, told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.

"What have the military police done to date about it? I doubt if the
dossier and the case will even reach the court," he said pessimistically.

According to the officer, such a case should be brought forward to a
military tribunal as soon as possible.

Military Police commander Col. Mungkono Mursidi could not be reached to
comment on the matter on Sunday.

According to his adjutant, his boss could not be disturbed as he was
receiving a guest at Military Police headquarters in Manggarai, South Jakarta.

When tried a second time, Mungkono's mobile phone had even been switched off.

Agus, a son of the Army Chief of Staff Gen. Subagyo, had been widely
reported as being apprehended by West Jakarta Police detectives during a
drug raid at a hotel.

He and an accomplice were reportedly caught in possession of heroin,
shabu-shabu and over 6,000 ecstasy pills.

Agus gave a different name at the time of his arrest but when police
discovered his real identity during questioning later, he was immediately
escorted to his father's house apparently upon the order of the Jakarta
Police chief. Maj. Gen. Noegroho Djajoesman.

The press caught wind of the arrest when the initial police report and
information regarding the handover to Agus's father was leaked.

It took at least nearly a month before National Police headquarters
confirmed the arrest of Agus, 24, and his friend at a West Jakarta hotel.

A senior police officer who had confirmed the report, said that "the boy
should not have been escorted to his father's home in the first place."

He should have been handed over immediately to the Military Police," said
the officer, who also asked not to be named.

"Elsewhere in the world, if police catch a soldier with drugs, the case
would be handled by the police. It is only in Indonesia, that we have the
Military Police handling such cases," he said with a cynical laugh.

The penalty for drug trafficking in a civilian court is a maximum 15 years
in jail or a fine of up to Rp 200 million (US$27,000), although only a few
judges in the country have had the courage to give the maximum penalty.

Lt. Gen. (ret.) Hasnan Habib, former ambassador to the United States,
demanded for a thorough and open investigation of the case.

"The military must dare to take responsibility. It must explain to the
people what the case was all about," he told reporters at the time.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar M. Sianipar has repeatedly
called on the courts to award the maximum penalty for drug traffickers,
noting the alarming increase of drug use among the country's youth.

"Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Japan sentence drug traffickers and
dealers to death. In Indonesia, drug dealers get out of jail within
months," Togar said. (ylt)