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Police, PPATK join forces in hunt for head of illegal gambling ring
Local authorities are ramping up both domestic and international efforts in their hunt for alleged gambling ring leader Jhoni.
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The North Sumatra Police headquarters, located in the provincial capital of Medan, is seen in this undated handout photograph. (North Sumatra Police/File)
T
he North Sumatra Police have teamed up with the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) in their efforts to capture fugitive Jhoni, who is wanted for allegedly running an illegal online gambling ring.
North Sumatra Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Hadi Wahyudi told The Jakarta Post on Saturday that the authorities expected to conduct a thorough investigation into Jhoni’s alleged gambling ring, which they had recently uncovered links to a number of senior police officials.
With the help of the PPATK, police investigators were focusing on suspicious transactions believed to be connected to Jhoni’s alleged gambling ring.
Aside from gambling charges, Hadi said, the North Sumatran Police’s ongoing investigation was also looking at Jhoni’s potential violations related to the criminal act of money laundering (TPPU).
Earlier, the police named two suspects as alleged members of the online gambling ring: Jhoni and his assistant Niko Prasetia, who was thought to manage the group’s operations.
While Niko has been in police custody since last month, Jhoni has continued to evade arrest. On Aug. 9, police raided his registered domicile in Deli Serdang, on the outskirts of the provincial capital Medan, only to find it empty.
He and his family are thought to have fled to Singapore.
The North Sumatra Police have placed Jhoni on its wanted (DPO) list on Aug. 24 and, according to Hadi, are coordinating with the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) and international relations division to request that Interpol issue a Red Notice for Jhoni.
"We urge Jhoni to return to Indonesia," Hadi added.
Last week, police also confiscated seven buildings belonging to Jhoni that were thought to have been used as underground gambling venues, where cash transactions of between Rp 500 million and Rp 1 billion (US$66,628) took place each day. (dds)
