Jakarta criminals have access to Pindad guns: Police

Firearms made by state-owned PT Pindad reached criminals in Jakarta through syndicates who allegedly managed the “underground” trading of the guns, a senior police officer said Monday.

The Jakarta Police chief detective Sr. Comr. Iriawan announced the alleged syndicates while commenting on the arrest of 44-year-old Suhendra, aka Hen aka Eng, for the illegal possession of a Pindad-made FN 9 mm pistol.

“We received reports that a resident allegedly owned a gun and frequently bragged about it in public,” Iriawan told the press at the Jakarta Police headquarters.

Following up the reports, the police arrested the suspect on Sunday night in Bendungan Hilir, Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta. “We found him with a FN pistol and six bullets, which we seized as evidence,” Iriawan said.

When questioned, the suspect admitted the gun was to be used for a robbery. “He confessed he had bought the gun from a man named Mawi for Rp 2.5 million [US$250],” he added.

There had been at least three robberies committed by armed criminals in the past week. “In Greater Jakarta, the number of armed robberies has been increasing for the past two months,” Iriawan said.

He suspected the criminals of having underground networks to syndicates selling illegal firearms, including those made by Pindad.

“We are still pursuing several fugitives. As soon as we arrest them, I hope we will be able expose the illicit networks,” he said.

When asked if the syndicate had connections with insiders working at Pindad, Iriawan said, “We have to conduct further investigations to prove that.” (bbs)