Exhibition Of Confiscated Money Is Considered Excessive And Not Beneficial

Photo Certificate: Money confiscated by the Attorney General's Office.(Between Photos)

JAKARTA Criminal law expert Chairul Huda assesses that the actions of law enforcement officials at the Attorney General's Office who display confiscated money in press conferences to the public are excessive and useless.

According to him, such practices should be clearly controlled in the revision of the Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP) because so far the legal apparatus has often acted arbitrarily.

"In my opinion, this is an excessive act and it seems that the Criminal Procedure Code is out of control. Even though people are not necessarily guilty, it's just that they are suspected of being guilty, then they become suspects. Now, I think these processes describe an unnatural process, an excessive process," said Chairul, Sunday, June 22, 2025.

In addition, the actions taken by the legal apparatus can affect the judge's decision. Chairul is worried that the judge can become objective in assessing cases because the public already has various opinions. In fact, the suspect is not necessarily true in committing a crime.

"Yes, respect the rights. Don't then feel as if an opinion was formed as if he was definitely guilty. And that makes it difficult for the judge. Yes, judges, so it is difficult to make a decision so that the tendency is yes, they are already guilty. Even though later they will be taken at the cassation level to be released," he said.

Chairul said that although the criminal justice system must be effective in tackling crime (crime control), it still has to uphold human rights (HAM) and protection for someone who is not necessarily proven guilty.

Therefore, he suggested that the revision of the Criminal Procedure Code be designed neutrally, not merely on the side of the crime control, but due processes also need to be considered. "Don't let the actions taken preempt the process, for example, the peak is in court," he said.