The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The coordinator of the Humanitarian Voluntary Team and the families of some of the May 1998 riot victims went to city police for a second time Thursday with embezzlement allegations against the team's treasurer.
The group first reported the case to police on January 31.
The team's coordinator, Syaldi, said irregularities in the nonprofit group's cash flow had been discovered in November 2005, when the team requested money to pay the school fees of 16 students, who are from the families of the May 1998 riot victims.
The treasurer, identified as Erin Ismayani, did not disburse the money nor provide a reasonable explanation as to why she did not, Syaldi said.
The team pays tuition fees amounting to Rp 8 million every six months.
Syaldi then ordered Erin to carry out an audit, which she did not. In fact, she never returned to work.
""We trusted her because she'd been the team's treasurer since 2001. But, when I checked the team's account last December, it contained just Rp 153,000. There should have been Rp 800 million in it,"" he told The Jakarta Post.
A number of programs have been hampered as a result of the missing money -- about Rp 600 million (US$63,157) -- and Erin's disappearance.
""Now, we can only help 16 of the 25 students we were assisting, through donations from friends of team members,"" Syaldi said.
Darwin, the mother of one of the victims, said the case solved the mystery of why the team had stopped in 2005 assisting her and doing social work.
""They gave us access to cheap medicine and cash assistance. They helped us maintain my son's grave in Pondok Rangon,"" said the 60-year-old woman whose son was trapped inside a blazing department store in East Jakarta.
Acting on the complaint, Adj. Comr. Riad said police would summon Erin a third time.
He said police had summoned her twice in March but she did not show up.
Riad said Erin could face the charge of violating Article 374 of the Criminal Code on embezzlement, which carries a maximum sentence of five years' jail. (07)
