T

he Jakarta Police are convinced that the cable jackets found recently in drains in high-security areas of the capital are owned by state electricity firm PLN.

Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Mohammad Iqbal told reporters on Wednesday that PLN owned most of the cable jackets abandoned in waterways around Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta.

'€œOur personnel from special crimes are still investigating the case. Hopefully we can arrest the perpetrators soon,'€ he said.

He previously said that the cable waste was likely to be related to a theft by a syndicate.

'€œBased on statements from witnesses and evidence, we have almost drawn the conclusion that it was an act of stealing by a syndicate,'€ he said.

Iqbal said PLN had been involved in the investigation and he suspected the cable jackets had been there for around one or two years.

In the past few weeks, the Jakarta Police and the city administration have been busy dealing with the discovery of cable jackets in waterways near high-security sites including the State Palace, the Vice Presidential Office, the US Embassy and City Hall.

It is reported that 22 truckloads of cable jackets were found in the area.

Mambang Hertadi, Jakarta'€™s PLN spokesperson, said the cables were possibly PLN'€™s old cables from the 1970s.

'€œWe are currently using cables that are bigger in diameter than the ones found in the waterways,'€ he said, adding that PLN would support the police with their investigation.

'€œThe diameter of cable jackets currently being used by PLN is 10 centimeters, while the ones found in the waterways were 3 to 5 cm. But they are quite similar to the cable we used in the past,'€ said Nurul Huda, PLN'€™s manager of distribution for Greater Jakarta.

He further added that his office had handed over the case to the police and was waiting for their results before drawing conclusions.

A day earlier, PLN signed an agreement with the Jakarta Police aimed at protecting PLN assets including electricity installations throughout the capital.

General manager of PLN Unit Development V, Robert Aprianto Purba, said that the agreement was expected to curb incidences of PLN assets being stolen and see the police help to ensure the smooth running of future projects planned by his office.

'€œCurrently there are 11 [electricity] depots in Greater Jakarta, some of which have almost reached their maximum limits. In response, we are attempting to [...] increase our electricity capacity to prevent potential blackouts,'€ he said.

Purba expressed hope that residents whose land bordered on planned transmission cable between Balaraja in Tangerang and Muara Tawar in Bekasi would support the project.

'€œWe will cooperate with the [Jakarta] governor to use some of the remaining assets owned by the local administration to increase electrical power,'€ he said. (fac/rez)