Fariz RM Faces 6 Years in Prison and IDR 800 Million Fine: I'll Just Go With It

JAKARTA - Veteran musician Fariz RM faced a bitter fate after the panel of judges at the South Jakarta District Court sentenced him to six years in prison in a narcotics case.

He was also ordered to pay a fine of IDR 800 million. However, in the face of this heavy sentence, Fariz RM displayed a remarkably calm reaction.

He stated that he would respect and comply with the legal process.

"It's okay (being sentenced to six years in prison), so let's just follow the trial. It's still ongoing, so let's respect the process. I'll just go through with it, I'll just go through the process," said Fariz RM at the South Jakarta District Court on Monday, August 4.

"The prosecutor's office has standard operating procedures (SOPs): an indictment must be made, a verdict must be given, and legal counsel will defend him. Ultimately, the verdict will be up to the court, so for me, I'll just follow the process to the end," he continued.

Before handing down the sentence, the public prosecutor (JPU) outlined the factors they considered. The fact that Fariz RM has previously been convicted is an aggravating factor.

"Before we arrive at the charges against the defendant, we will present the factors we will consider in the criminal charges, namely the aggravating factors, namely that the defendant's actions do not support the government's program to eradicate drug trafficking, and that the defendant has previously been convicted," said the public prosecutor.

"The mitigating factor is that the defendant was cooperative during the trial," he continued.

The public prosecutor then read out the final verdict.

"First, it is declared that the defendant has been legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing the unlawful crime of possessing, storing, and controlling a Class I narcotic that is not a plant and participating in a crime without the right or unlawfully possessing a Class I narcotic in a form that is not a plant," said the public prosecutor.

"As stated in the indictment, the second charge is violating Article 112 paragraph 1 of Law No. 35 of 2009 concerning Narcotics and also violating Article 111 paragraph 1 letter a of Law No. 35 of 2009 concerning Narcotics, in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph 1 point 1 of the Criminal Code," he continued.

"Second, to sentence the defendant to six years' imprisonment, minus the time served in temporary detention, with an order that the defendant remain in detention," said the public prosecutor.

"Third, to fine the defendant IDR 800,000,000.00 (eight hundred million rupiah). If the fine is not paid, it will be replaced with three months' imprisonment," he concluded.