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Police ready for drug kingpin’s case review
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On guard – Hundreds of police personnel secure the Cilacap District Court complex during a second case review for terror convict Abu Bakar Ba’asyir in February. (thejakartapost.com/Agus Maryono)
Drug lord Freddy Budiman is scheduled to go on trial at the Cilacap District Court on Wednesday for a second appeal on his case.
The death row convict, who is currently serving a sentence in an isolation cell at Pasir Putih Penitentiary on Nusakambangan prison island in Cilacap regency, Central Java, is reportedly on the list of inmates for a third round of executions expected in the near future.
Ahead of Freddy’s trial, the Cilacap Police said they did not want to see any reckless behavior, and would dispatch around 200 personnel to secure areas around the court.
“We are tightening security in several areas from Pasir Putih Penitentiary on Nusakambangan to Wijaya Pura pier and routes leading to the Cilacap District Court compound,” Cilacap Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Ulung Sampurna Jaya told journalists on Tuesday.
Earlier, the police announced that a group of death row inmates would be executed in the middle of May. However, the executions have been postponed until after Idul Fitri following the second case review submitted by Freddy. The Cilacap District Court has reportedly been chosen for the trial because of its proximity to Nusakambangan Island.
Ulung said the security precautions taken by the police for Freddy’s trial were not as tight as measures during a second case review filed by terror convict Abu Bakar Ba’asyir at the Cilacap District Court in February. For Ba’asyir’s trial, the police dispatched more than 1,000 personnel.
“The security measures for Freddy’s trial are different to those provided for Ba’asyir because he [Ba’asyir] has a lot of supporters, so our anticipative measures had to be different,” said the police chief.
Meanwhile, a public relations officer at the Cilacap District Court, Catur Prasetyo, confirmed that the court had made preparations shortly after receiving Freddy’s case dossier. He said the court received a delegation of authority to examine the second case review submitted by Freddy from the West Jakarta District Court on May 10.
“The first hearing will be held on May 25, in which we will hear the reading of Freddy’s second case review appeal,” said Catur.
He said the Cilacap District Court had set up a panel of judges to handle Freddy’s case review. The judging panel will be presided over by Catur, with Vilia Sari and Cokia Ana Pontia as members.
As previously reported, Freddy was arrested on April 28, 2011, by Jakarta Police officers for smuggling 1.4 million ecstasy pills from China. The West Jakarta District Court sentenced Freddy to death in a trial held five months after his arrest.
The drug lord began serving his sentence at the Cipinang Narcotics Prison from November 2012 to July 2013. Despite his death sentence, Freddy continued to run a drug business from inside his cell at the Cipinang prison.
Freddy was moved to Batu Prison on Nusakambangan prison island in July 2013. He reportedly continued to distribute narcotics from Nusakambangan. Last year, Freddy was reported to have joined with the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group following his close relationships with several terror convicts on Nusakambangan. (ebf)
