U

nder tight escort of sharia police officers, Syahrul bin Muhammad limped to a stage.

The man was not going to preach but was about to receive punishment in the form of public caning carried out in front of the Jami mosque in Jantho city, Aceh Besar regency, on Friday.

Syahrul was one of four suspects arrested for gambling - an offense punishable by caning - who were scheduled to be punished.

But he was unlucky. The three other suspects escaped the detention cell at the Jantho prosecutor's office, 15 minutes before they were to be caned.

The four were caught gambling in a coffee stall in the village on Dec. 28 last year. They were immediately taken to the public order and sharia police headquarters together with evidence in the form of Rp 100,000 (US$11) in cash and a pack of domino cards.

On Thursday, the Sharia Court sentenced each of them to six lashes of the cane.

Jantho Public Order and sharia police chief M. Rusli expressed regret that the three other suspects escaped.

"We placed them in the custody of the Jantho prosecutor's office, so they were the responsibility of the prosecutors. How did they escape? I believe it's just negligence on the part of the officers," Rusli said.

Rusli strongly denied allegations that officers at the detention center were bribed.

He blamed the escape purely on negligence on the part of the officers, saying that the three suspects escaped as they after making an excuse to go use the bathroom.

He said he learned of the escape 15 minutes before Friday prayers and that he had ordered his men to comb the city, but that their search had been unsuccessful.

He promised the three escaped suspects would still be punished if they were caught.

Sharia law, which was introduced to Aceh in 2003, already bans gambling, drinking alcohol and makes it compulsory for women to wear headscarves.

Dozens of public canings have been carried out by local sharia police against violators of Islamic law.

News of the escape raised suspicion among residents.

Resident Amri said the caning in Aceh was unfairly implemented since it only affected petty criminals like gamblers and drinkers.

"This is really unfair. Why do only the common people receive these punishments? When will those involved in corruption be whipped or have their hands chopped off?" he asked.

Serious violators, he said, could buy their way out.