T

he East Kalimantan Police’s operation targeting the alleged collection of illegal levies at the Palaran container port in Samarinda has expanded to include Samarinda Mayor Syaharie Jaang, who is suspected of playing a role in the long-standing foul play.

On Friday, police investigators raided the Samudra Sejahtera Cooperative (Komura) and seized Rp 6.1 billion (US$458,613), which they suspect was illegally collected from container trucks entering the terminal.

Three suspects were nabbed in the operation, who were identified only by their initials. They are: DHW, the secretary of Komura; NO, aka El, the field manager of another cooperative, Pemuda Demokrat Indonesia Bersatu (PDIB) Cooperative; and PDIB chair HS.

The police were quick to make a link between the case and the mayor and subsequently summoned him for questioning.

“We grilled [Jaang] until 2 a.m. on Sunday at the police’s mobile brigade headquarters in Samarinda Seberang,” East Kalimantan Police’s spokesperson Sr. Comr. Ade Yaya Suryana said on Monday.

The questioning commenced at 1 p.m. on Saturday but was halted several hours before being resumed at 8 p.m. as Jaang was allowed by the police to accompany Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi who traveled to the East Kalimantan provincial capital of Samarainda to check on the case.

Ade said investigators had mainly asked the mayor questions surrounding the issuance of mayoral decree No. 551.21/083/HK-KS/II/2016 on the management of the Palaran container port’s parking area by PDIB Cooperative.

The police suspect that the regulation was issued as a basis for the cooperatives to collect illegal entrance fees of Rp 20,000 from every truck or trailer with a capacity of over 7 tons and Rp 5,000 from those with a 7-ton capacity.

Similarly, Komura was also allegedly given the authority as the sole provider of stevedores at the container port.

East Kalimantan Police chief Insp. Gen. Safaruddin said the force would accountably investigate the case without exception. “I will not consider their positions. We will scrutinize everybody who was involved,” he said.

On Monday the mayor revoked the problematic mayoral decree.

He said he did not want to add to the burden on the city administration as the decree was under investigation as the alleged legal basis of the collection of illegal levies at the Palaran port.

Jaang also said that since the decree was issued, the cooperatives had contributed an average of Rp 20 million per month to the city’s coffers. So far, he said, they had made a total contribution of Rp 217 million.

Komura chairman Jafar Abdul Gaffar denied the allegation that his cooperatives had collected illegal levies.

“The money seized by the police is worker salaries,” he said in Jakarta as quoted by kompas.com.