Police Arrest Distributors Who Played The Price Of Oxygen Cylinders, Perpetrators' Profit Reaches IDR 300 Million

PHOTO VIA BETWEEN

JAKARTA - Members of the Central Jakarta Metro Police Criminal Investigation Unit arrested distributors and importers who raised the price of oxygen cylinders and regulators above the normal price or the highest retail price (HET) set by the government.

Several pieces of evidence were secured, namely 166 oxygen cylinders with various sizes ranging from one cubic meter, 1.5 cubic meters, and two cubic meters; and 126 oxygen regulators.

"The suspect is a distributor as well as an importer of the cylinders or goods being secured. Further investigation will be carried out regarding the information on these accounts", said Central Jakarta Metro Police Deputy Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Setyo Koes Heriyanto, quoted by Antara, Thursday, July 15.

Setyo said the game on the price of oxygen cylinders was carried out by the two suspects with the initials RDP and WA. The police have also secured the crime scene in the Mangga Dua area, Central Jakarta.

The suspect's modus operandi was to sell oxygen cylinders and regulators at a price double the normal average price in the market.

There is also the suspect's motive for increasing the price because the profit received is very large, considering that the two goods are health support tools that are needed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The profit received from the sale of one oxygen is quite tempting because only a few weeks, at the end of June and early July, the turnover received is around IDR 300 million", said Setyo.

The two suspects were subject to multiple articles, including Law No. 4/1984 on Infectious Disease Outbreaks, Law no. 36 of 2009 concerning Health; Law Number 8 of 1999 concerning Consumer Protection; even Law no. 8 of 2010 concerning the Crime of Money Laundering.

"The clear suspicion of criminal acts is that according to the Emergency Restrictions on Community Activities (PPKM) regulations and government regulations, it is forbidden to increase the price of certain goods that have been set by the government above the HET", said Setyo.