Kemenhut hands over 3 Bentang Seblat forest explorers to the prosecutor's office

Archive - The area of the former illegal palm oil plantation in Bentang Alam Seblat which was successfully recaptured by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources in an operation in Bengkulu, Tuesday (2/12/2025). ANTARA/HO-Kemenhut

JAKARTA - The Directorate General of Law Enforcement (Gakkum) of the Ministry of Forestry (Kemenhut) has handed over three suspects for encroaching on forest areas in Bentang Alam Seblat, Bengkulu to the Mukomuko District Attorney's Office as part of the continuation of the legal process.

"The Red and White Operation of Bentang Seblat is a real effort of the forest area security process in maintaining the sustainability of the Bentang Seblat forest area function which is the habitat of the Sumatran elephant," said Director General of Gakkum Kemenhut Dwi Januanto Nugroho as reported by ANTARA, Friday, January 30.

"The Ministry of Forestry will continue to ensure that every violation in the forest area is processed according to law, while strengthening prevention efforts through integrated supervision and cross-sectoral synergy," he added.

The three suspects SM, PN and BH were handed over to the Mukomuko District Attorney's Office along with evidence of the work hut, motorcycle, mobile phone, palm oil seedlings, and equipment used for forest encroachment.

Head of the Forestry Gakkum Office for the Sumatra Region, Hari Novianto, explained that the arrest of PN and BH began with the statements of workers who were secured by officers while working on land owned by each suspect.

Meanwhile, SM was caught by officers while carrying out work hut repair activities on land owned by him within the forest area.

"The submission of suspects and evidence to the prosecutor's office is part of the law enforcement process that must be carried out thoroughly," said Hari Novianto.

He also expressed his appreciation for the support of the Bengkulu Prosecutor's Office, Mukomuko District Attorney's Office, Bengkulu Police, Mukomuko Police, Bengkulu LHK Office, Kerinci Seblat National Park Headquarters, and Bengkulu KSDA Office for synergy and collaboration in efforts to enforce the law and secure the Bentang Seblat forest area.