JAKARTA – Complicated, convoluted. The two words are appropriate to be attached to the current case, which involves the Head of the Propam Police Division, namely Inspector General Ferdy Sambo. The story is convoluted, more than the story in soap operas whose ending is difficult to predict.
Starting with an accusation of infidelity, missing CCTV footage, and various claims of cover-up, in the last two weeks Indonesia seems to be being held hostage by the case of Inspector General Ferdy Sambo. Public trust in one of Southeast Asia's most important state institutions is at stake. It has even become a burden for President Joko Widodo.
Of course, a young non-commissioned officer who will turn 28 on November 29, Nofriansyah Yoshua Hutabarat, was found dead with gunshot wounds at Inspector General Ferdy Sambo's house. The situation is still a mystery to this day.
The story now comes to efforts to excavate Brigadier J's grave, which later popularized the term exhumation. Then the re-autopsy of his body at Sungai Bahar Hospital, Muarojambi, Jambi became a new thing at the hospital, because it had never been done there before.
Police vs PublicThe starting point of this case is clear, namely the discovery of Brigadier J's body at the official residence of Inspector General Ferdy Sambo. Brigadier J is said to have died as a result of a gunfight, after being caught intending to act indecently against the General's wife, Putri Candrawati.
Inspector General Ferdy Sambo (49 years old) was not at home because he went to do a PCR test. Previously, Brigadier J was said to have just taken his boss with his wife on a trip from Magelang to Jakarta. These are all police versions of stories, which are then quoted and reported by most of the mainstream media in Indonesia.
But the family lawyer Brigadier J's version of the story is different, contradictory. They claimed that Brigadier J's death at Inspector General Ferdy Sambo's house was caused by "premeditated murder". He was even tortured before being killed.
One of Brigadier J's family lawyers, Kamaruddin Simanjuntak, said that many wounds and bruises were found on the body of the Young NCO. Brigadier J's family opposed police directives not to open the coffin after arriving in Muarojambi, his parents' home.
The coffin was finally opened. The family cried when they learned about the condition of Brigadier J's body. The buttons of his uniform were opened by the family, so that video recordings and photos of Brigadier J's injured body circulated on various social media platforms.
"Based on evidence such as pictures and witness statements, there are incisions under the eyes, sharp object incisions in the nose, incisions on the lips, scars on the neck, burn marks from cigarette burns, and crushed finger bones," Kamaruddin told the media, including foreign media such as The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age from Australia.
"His fingernails were pulled out with a clamp, his leg was pierced by a sharp object, and there was an incision behind his ear," said Kamaruddin again.
The police's description that Brigadier J shot seven times but missed also deserves to be questioned. He is mentioned as a member of the Mobile Brigade Corps, and a sniper. Meanwhile, his opponent in the police version of the shootout opened five shots. Five hit the target, leaving seven gunshot wounds to Brigadier J. Again, seven gunshot wounds!
The team of lawyers also stated that Brigadier J received death threats the day before he died at the home of Inspector General Ferdy Sambo. The list of phone calls and messages from Brigadier J's cell phone has also disappeared, deleted.
Another question that arose was about the weapon used to shoot Brigadier J. It was stated that Brigadier J was shot using an Austrian-made semi-automatic pistol, the Glock 17. This weapon was not commonly used by low-ranking police officers. And one more oddity, the incident was announced three days after the incident.
Regarding CCTV footage. Initially, it was stated that the CCTV at Inspector General Ferdy Sambo's house was damaged. But then a statement emerged that the police were examining the footage, which was not originally found from around the crime scene or the neighborhood around Inspector General Ferdy Sambo's house.
Potential to Injure Police IntegrityIf the death of Brigadier J at Inspector General Ferdy Sambo's house is not really resolved, then this has the potential to injure the integrity of the Indonesian National Police.
As stated by Bambang Rukmino, researcher on police issues at the Institute for Security and Strategic Studies. According to him, this case was actually an “ordinary criminal matter”, but was handled unprofessionally by the police, thereby risking damaging the integrity of the institution.
"I've said it, it's over. Open as is, do not cover up, transparent. Already! This is important so that there is no public doubt about the events that occurred. This is what must be maintained. Public trust in the National Police must be maintained," said President Jokowi in response to the incident at Inspector General Ferdy Sambo's house, as quoted by Antara on July 21, 2022.
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