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Mangrove destroyer sentenced to 2 years in prison
The Probolinggo District Court (PN) says it has sentenced a sand miner who was also directly responsible for the destruction of mangroves in a forest conservation area in Sumberasih district, Probolinggo, to two years in prison and ordered him to pay Rp 2 billion (US$164,230
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he Probolinggo District Court (PN) says it has sentenced a sand miner who was also directly responsible for the destruction of mangroves in a forest conservation area in Sumberasih district, Probolinggo, to two years in prison and ordered him to pay Rp 2 billion (US$164,230.6) in fines.
Probolinggo PN spokesperson Putu Agus Wiranata said the court handed down the sentence to 58-year-old Busrin, aka Karyo, in a trial on Oct. 22. He said a perpetrator of the destruction of mangroves deserved a heavy punishment.
'We are not discriminative in law enforcement because all Indonesian citizens have an equal position under the law. The convict was found guilty of felling mangrove trees in the conservation forest which covers two 30-square-meter plots of land,' Putu told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
Busrin cleared the mangrove forest to use it for agricultural farming land and used the mangrove wood for firewood. He is currently serving his sentence at the Probolinggo Penitentiary.
As reported earlier, Busrin was arrested by the Probolinggo Police's water police unit (Polair) on July 16, based on reports of mangrove ecosystem destruction submitted by the Mangrove Keepers Community Group.
When arrested, Busrin admitted that he used the mangrove trees as firewood. The police handed over Busrin's case dossier to prosecutors on Sept. 24 and the Probolinggo PN ruled on the case in a trial led by Putu on Oct. 22.
Putu said the panel of judges had considered many elements during the trial including Busrin's financial situation.
'That was why we ordered him to pay Rp 2 billion in fines or face an additional one month of imprisonment,' he said.
Putu said Busrin violated Law No. 27/2007 on the management of coastal areas and small islands, which carries a minimum sentence of two years in prison and a minimum fine of Rp 2 billion. (ebf)(++++)
