Ten Depok Police officers were given two-to three-week sentences during a closed-door tribunal Tuesday for excessive use of force in an attempted arrest that led to the death of a suspected gambler last week.
Depok Police deputy chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Ahmad Subarkah said First. Brig. Iwan Sarjana, the officer who had gunned down the suspect, would serve 21 days in detention, while nine other officers faced two weeks each of detention.
Ahmad said the tribunal had concluded that Iwan had made a procedural mistake during the arrest.
"*Iwan* fired prematurely," he said.
The tribunal also slapped Iwan and chief Brig. Irfan, who led the arrest, with a respective one-year and a six-month stay of promotion.
After serving their detention, seven officers, including Iwan and Irfan, will be transferred to other posts.
Indonesian Police Watch (IPW) chairman Neta S. Pane, however, called the punishments "too lenient".
"In line with their duty to enforce the law, a police officer should respect the sanctity of human life," he said.
He added the case should serve as a lesson for the National Police to work harder to improve the competencies of their field officers.
Under the prescribed arrest procedure, officers can only open fire in self-defense. Should a suspect attempt to flee, an officer's first resort is to give chase rather than open fire.
Last Tuesday, the group of 10 Depok Police officers raided an uninhabited house in Limo, Depok, arresting several public minivan drivers for allegedly gambling on the premises. During the raid, Iwan shot driver Subagio, 34, for allegedly trying to flee.
The father of two died on the way to the hospital.
Witnesses, most of them friends of the victim, said the shooting was unwarranted since the house the police raided only had one exit, which officers had already surrounded.
In response, the Jakarta Police's internal affairs division has begun a case to question all 10 officers for reported excessive use of force.
