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The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Batam court hands down life sentence to 10 ex-cops for selling meth
File photo of police officers guarding a cache of methamphetamine during a press conference in Jakarta on April 28, 2021. - AFP JAKARTA: The Batam District Court in Riau Islands province has sentenced 10 former narcotics officers from the Barelang Police to life in prison for selling a large quantity of methamphetamine, a highly addictive stimulant. The court found that the defendants had conspired to traffic more than 5gm of the Class I synthetic drug over an extended period. Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for the five key defendants: Satria Nanda, the former head of the Barelang Police narcotics unit, as well as his subordinates Shigit Sarwo Edhi, Rahmadi, Fadhilah and Alex Chandra. Meanwhile the prosecution had demanded life imprisonment for the remaining defendants Wan Rahmat, Ibnu Ma'ruf Rambe, Arianto, Jaka Surya and Junaidi. 'The sentence reduction from the death penalty to life imprisonment reflects the commitment of the Indonesian legal system to providing convicted individuals with an opportunity for rehabilitation,' Judge Douglas Napitupulu said on Thursday, as quoted by state news agency Antara. In connection with the case, the court also sentenced Aziz Martua Siregar and Zulkifli Simanjuntak to 20 years in prison for drug dealing. The police officers were convicted on charges related to their involvement in smuggling 44 kilograms of methamphetamine from Malaysia to Batam in June 2024. The officers were accused of concealing 9kg of the drug and conspiring with a dealer to stage a fake raid to 'seize' the remaining 35kg, which also resulted in the arrest of three couriers and buyers. The prosecutors alleged the 10 policemen carried out the scheme after they had been reprimanded by their superiors for failing to meet their performance targets, including not uncovering any major drug cases. Last July, around a month after the staged drug bust, the officers gradually sold 4kg of the hidden cache of methamphetamine to three dealers, including Aziz and Zulkifli. They earned approximately Rp 960 million from the deal, distributing Rp 500 million to their suppliers and pocketing the remaining Rp 460 million. In August, the officers sold 1 kilo of the drug to Aziz, who was arrested by the Batam Police soon afterward that led to an internal probe into the officers' activities. This prompted some officers involved in the deal to try and sell the remaining 5kg to other dealers in an attempt to raise money for their legal costs, but their effort was thwarted when those dealers were also apprehended. This is not the first case in which police officers have been sentenced to life imprisonment for drug offences. In May 2023, the West Jakarta District Court handed down a life sentence to Teddy Minahasa, a former two-star police general and West Sumatra Police chief, for his involvement in a scheme to sell illicit drugs that the Bukit Tinggi pPolice had seized during a local operation. The three-judge panel found Teddy guilty of orchestrating a scheme in May 2022 to steal 5kg of methamphetamine from the Bukit Tinggi police's drug vault for selling to dealers in Jakarta. During his sentence hearing on May 9, 2023, the court said Teddy had instructed his subordinate Dody Prawiranegara, a mid-ranking officer, to swap 10kg of confiscated methamphetamine in the evidence storage with alum, a chemical compound that has a similar appearance, in a plot to sell the drug on the streets. According to the court, after initially refusing Dody later relented and agreed to sell only 5 kg of the narcotic, enlisting the help of his aide Syamsul Maarif to make the switch. Teddy put Dody in touch with his longtime acquaintance Linda Pudjiastuti, aka Anita Cepu, who paid Rp 300 million (US$20,320) for the 5kg of meth and then resold it to drug dealers in Jakarta. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
The Star
25-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Indonesia evaluates airline ticket pricing formula amid rising costs
Well-wishers look on as a Garuda Indonesia Boeing 777-300ER in retro livery, transporting Indonesian Muslim pilgrims for the annual hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, takes off from the Sultan Iskandar Muda International Airport in Blang Bintang, Aceh province on May 18, 2025. - AFP JAKARTA: The Transportation Ministry is evaluating airline ticket prices amid mounting cost pressures, which could lead to increased airfares paid by passengers, despite the government's longstanding efforts to keep prices affordable. Lukman F. Laisa, the ministry's civil aviation director general, told lawmakers on House of Representatives Commission V, which oversees infrastructure and transportation, on Thursday (May 22) that the evaluation was being conducted in light of several key considerations. He first pointed out rising airline maintenance costs, leading to higher operational expenses to reactivate aircraft, previously grounded amid the decline in travel demand during the Covid-19 pandemic. 'There are disruptions in the global spare parts ecosystem, such as engine-related difficulties, rising contract costs and a weakening rupiah exchange rate against the United States dollar,' Lukman added, as quoted from Kumparan. Moreover, new accounting standards are expected to reduce aircraft leasing costs, as they are subject to depreciation. Airlines have also restructured their leasing debts after Covid 19. Given these considerations, the ministry has proposed several changes in the airline ticket pricing regulations. 'There have been changes in fare structure with a new calculation formula that takes travel time into account, as well as revised upper and lower fare limits,' Lukman explained. The regulations subject to revision are Transportation Ministerial Regulation No. 20/2019 on airfares for domestic commercial airlines and the Ministerial Decree No. 106/2019 on the implementation of the new airfare ceiling prices. Lukman also recommended adjusting the pricing of domestic airline tickets in economy class, particularly for short distance routes. He also suggested that the fare differentiations in the service categories of full service, medium and low-cost carrier (LCC) should apply only on jet-powered aircraft. Currently, they also apply to propeller-driven aircraft, which are typically used to service regional air travel, particularly to remote and underserved destinations. 'Lastly, adjusting upper and lower fare caps to avoid predatory pricing and to improve business competitiveness,' he said, adding that it would also protect the public from the effects of having too wide a gap between low-season and high-season flight tickets. At the same meeting, flag carrier Garuda Indonesia also complained about the increasing operational costs seen in the past few years, while the upper price limit had not been adjusted since 2019. Garuda Indonesia president director Wamildan Tsani Panjaitan said airlines faced climbing prices of aviation turbine fuel and maintenance, coupled with the rupiah exchange rate that has also depreciated significantly against the US dollar over the past years. 'This is certainly weighing on airlines because a decrease in load factor or passenger occupancy by three to five percentage points affects airlines' margins and profitability greatly,' he explained, as quoted from CNBC Indonesia, adding that airlines had been operating with tight margins for years. In 2019, it cost Rp 194 million (US$11,876) per flight, but this has now risen by 38 per cent to Rp 269 million per flight due to increases in the cost of maintenance repair overhaul (MRO) and aviation turbine fuel prices, among other factors. While leasing expenses could be reduced through the restructuring process, Wamildan noted that the minimum wage for workers in the airline industry had increased by 35 per cent since 2019, adding pressures to already high operational costs. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
Straits Times
19-05-2025
- Straits Times
Indonesia raises alert to highest level for Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano
Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki erupts, spewing volcanic ash, as seen from Nobo village in East Flores. PHOTO: AFP JAKARTA - Indonesia raised the alert level of Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki to the highest after it erupted eight times over the weekend, its volcanology agency has said. Lewotobi Laki-laki, located on Flores island in eastern Indonesia, spewed volcanic ash between 3km to 5.5km high on May 18, Mr Muhammad Wafid, the agency's head said in a statement late on May 18. "Our analysis showed that the activities of Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki are still high so we raised the status level starting on Sunday at 8pm," he said. Images shared by the agency showed clouds of thick grey ash billowing from the crater. Rumbling noises with low to high intensity were heard from the nearest monitoring post during the eruption, Mr Wafid added. On the morning of May 19, the volcano erupted again, belching 1.2km high ash clouds. The agency said a 6km radius from the crater must be cleared and warned the residents of the risk of cold lava flow from the crater once heavy rains took place. There has not been any evacuation of residents or flight cancellations due to the eruptions so far, said Mr Heronimus Lamawuran, a local government official. In March, an eruption at Lewotobi Laki-laki forced some airlines to cancel and delay flights into Bali, including Australia's Jetstar and Qantas Airways. At least nine people were killed and thousands were evacuated when the volcano erupted in November 2024. Indonesia sits on the "Pacific Ring of Fire", an area of high seismic activity atop multiple tectonic plates. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
22-04-2025
- Health
- The Star
Prabowo says Pope Francis will always be an example for us
A portrait of Pope Francis is seen as church officials make preparations at the Jakarta Cathedral on April 21, 2025, following the death of the Pope. - AFP JAKARTA: President Prabowo Subianto mourned the death of Pope Francis on Monday (April 21), saying the world had lost a "role model". "The world has once again lost a role model who had a great commitment to peace, humanity, and brotherhood," Prabowo wrote on social media. ALSO READ: Anwar remembers Pope Francis' legacy of compassion Pope Francis died of a stroke, causing a coma and "irreversible" heart failure, according to his death certificate released by the Vatican on Monday. The 88-year-old Catholic leader died on Monday morning, almost a month after having been discharged from five weeks in hospital where he nearly succumbed to double pneumonia. ALSO READ: 'Rest in peace, Papa': Catholics in Singapore mourn Pope Francis Pope Francis died at 7.35am (0535 GMT) in his apartment at the Santa Marta residence in the Vatican. He died of "cerebral stroke, coma, irreversible cardiocirculatory collapse", the death certificate said. ALSO READ: Cardinals to meet after death of Pope Francis, plan for funeral The pontiff had already been affected by a previous episode of acute respiratory failure when he had double pneumonia in hospital, it added. He had also suffered from arterial hypertension, multiple bronchiectasis and Type 2 diabetes -- something that was not previously known. It was signed by the director of health of the Vatican City State, professor Andrea Arcangeli. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
