Jayapura. Jayapura’s police chief resigned on Tuesday in the wake of mounting criticism over a recent scandal in which three of his officers forced a female detainee to perform oral sex on them.
Adj. Sr. Comr. Imam Setiawan said he had made the decision because the “moral responsibility” for the incident rested with him, apologizing to the family of the victim and to the public for his failure to prevent the assault.
“As the chief of the Jayapura police force, I hold full responsibility for the immoral acts of my three subordinates,” he said.
“That’s the consequence of being the leader. I consider myself to have failed in my duty and am hence resigning my post.”
Imam also apologized to the public for the officers’ actions, which he said were an aberration of the police’s duty to protect and serve. “As the Jayapura Police chief, I wholeheartedly apologize for my men’s shameless actions, both to the public and to the family of the victim,” he said.
The scandal emerged last month when a female detainee now being held at Abepura Penitentiary revealed she was forced to perform oral sex on three officers during a three-month period while in remand at the Jayapura Police’s detention center.
The victim told the Jakarta Globe that the incidents occurred between November and January, when she was being held for illegal gambling.
The officers in question were sentenced to 21 days in jail and slapped with administrative sanctions, including a delay of promotion.
Imam said that while he faced criticism over the light punishment, he was not in a position to mete out harsher punishment. “Unless someone from the family, like the woman’s husband, comes forward to press charges against the officers, I remain powerless to bring criminal charges against them,” he said.
“But if they do come forward, I will ensure that the officers face the full extent of the law.”
In a separate case in Papua’s Biak-Numfor district, seven men, including four police officers, were arrested for allegedly gang raping a 15-year-old girl on Feb. 11.
Adj. Sr. Comr. Rickho Taruna Mauruh, the district police chief, said all seven faced charges that carried a minimum punishment of five years in prison.
The four police officers involved have been fired.