NTB Police Follow Up Complaints About Middle Officers Of Police Extorting Drug Suspects

The suspect in the Magic Mushroom distribution case in Gili Trawangan with the initials IA was presented at a press conference at the NTB Police, Mataram, Wednesday (18/9/2024). (ANTARA/Dhimas B.P.)

MATARAM - The West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Regional Police are following up on reports of public complaints regarding allegations that a number of middle-ranking police officers were involved in extorting the suspect in the alleged trafficking of Magic Mushroom in Gili Trawangan with the initials IA.

"Yes, he said there was (community complaints) alleged extortion, we are still checking whether or not it is true," said Head of Public Relations of the NTB Police, Kombes Rio Indra Lesmana, quoted by ANTARA, Friday, September 20.

The check on the public complaint report is now under the handling of the NTB Police's Professional and Security Division (Propam).

"The one who examines the truth is the Head of the Addiction Division, then he will go to Propam. Propam bias that goes down Paminal, then it is handed over to Provos for examination," he said.

The public complaint report has received attention from the Itwasda Polda NTB.

The NTB Regional Police's internal surveillance officer on Friday morning met the suspect IA at the NTB Police Detention Center to clarify the truth of the alleged extortion.

"But, earlier on, what I wanted to know was the prisoner from America. However, the result was that I didn't know whether it was true or not," he said.

Regarding the alleged extortion report, there were Pamen officials who received money from the suspect IA, Rio admitted that he did not know this.

"Oh, nothing. I don't know yet. If anything, it can be reported. That's why this is still under investigation," said Rio.

Meanwhile, Lalu Anton Hariawan as the attorney for the suspect IA confirmed that it was his party who made the public complaint report.

The report was submitted Lalu Anton with the suspect's team of attorneys IA to the National Police Headquarters in Jakarta, Wednesday (18/9).

"We directly convey the report to the Wassidik Bureau of the National Police Headquarters. Then, the Bureau of Supervision, Investigation, and Professional Development of the Propam Division of the National Police Headquarters, as well as the Paminal Bureau of the Propam Division of the National Police Headquarters," said Lalu Anton.

In the report, the IA suspect's legal team submitted a complaint against the abuse of authority of a number of Pamen officials in handling the IA suspect's case by asking for hundreds of millions of money. The request was filed before he was a suspect.

"So, in the Dumas report, we have attached all the evidence of requests for money to our clients. Some have asked for Rp. 300 million, and Rp. 100 million," he said.

With the public complaint report to the National Police Headquarters, Lalu Anton hopes that the police can hold a special case for handling and determining IA as a suspect in the circulation of Magic Mushroom in Gili Trawangan.

According to him, the police have made the wrong steps in naming IA as a suspect in the case of the circulation of Magic Mushroom. This can be seen from the chronology of the arrest and search of the place of business that was accused of not being on target.

"There should have been the initials RM arrested here, because the black plastic evidence containing Magic Mushroom was secured from another suspect with the initials O, not from our client's place of business, but from the refrigerator behind RM's workshop," he said.

The NTB Regional Police on Wednesday (18/9) held a press conference on drug cases that were revealed in the August 2024 period by also presenting IA as one of the suspects.

Director of the NTB Police Narcotics Investigation Kombes Deddy Supriadi in a press conference said that the suspect IA was the controller of the Magic Mushroom distribution network in the Gili Trawangan area.

The role of the suspect IA was revealed to have started with the arrest of two bar employees in Gili Trawangan who were tasked with mixing processed Magic Mushroom drinks with the initials MRF and MY. The arrest in mid-February 2024 was carried out by the NTB Police's Sub-Directorate I Ditresnarkoba Team.

From the arrest of two bar employees, the police carried out developments by arresting and naming two bar managers as additional suspects in April 2024. Both have the initials AZ and R.

"The role of AZ and R is as the manager of the bar where MRF and MY work. They both put Magic Mushroom on the trading menu at the bar," said Deddy in a press conference on Wednesday (18/9).

From AZ and R's legal process, it was revealed that O's role was Idamart's cashier, the IA suspect's place of business. He is said to be an intermediary who sold IA's Magic Mushroom.

"From O's statement, this then strengthens the evidence for us to arrest IA, which is our target operation in the circulation of Magic Mushroom in Gili Trawangan," he said.

Regarding IA's origins in obtaining Magic Mushroom and selling them in Gili Trawangan, Deddy ensured that he did not cultivate it independently, but instead got it from the Central Lombok region.