The Jayapura City Police in Papua captured suspected gang leader Dani
Kogoya, who had been on the police’s most-wanted list for his alleged
involvement in a number of crimes dating back to 2010.
Police
apprehended Dani, who was shot in the leg after he and his two
counterparts tried to evade arrest at a hotel in Jayapura on Sunday
night.
“Dani is currently being treated at Bhayangkara Hospital
in Jayapura,” said Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Johannes Nughroho on
Monday.
Among the crimes committed by Dani Kogoya’s gang,
Johannes alleged, were the murder of a taxi driver and the torching of
his vehicle on June 7, 2011 in Skyland.
On Aug. 1, 2011, the
gang’s members were alleged to have assassinated four civilians in
Nafri, as they reportedly fired eight shots into a vehicle in Abe
Pantai.
According to Jayapura City Police chief Adj. Comr.
Alfred Papare, the gang is also assumed to have shot to death a civilian
named Riswandi Yusuf on Nov. 29, 2010.
“Dani and his [gang] members have been on our most-wanted list for their involvement in a number of murder cases,” Alfred said.
After
questioning Dani and his two colleagues, police raided a house on
Monday in Tanah Hitam, where they arrested 22 people. After further
investigation, five people were named as suspects, while the remaining
people were released.
The sweep in Tanah Hitam was followed with
another raid on a house in Abepura, where police seized a number of
firearms, including two guns with nearly 200 rounds of ammunition. Some
traditional weapons, such as blades, axes, bows and arrows, were also
found at the scene.
“There is a presumption that the house [in Abepura] was used as a base for the gang,” said Alfred.
Meantime,
Johannes said that there was an indication that the crimes allegedly
committed by the gang were part of their attempt to free themselves from
the NKRI (Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia).
Separately,
in North Sumatra, police detained four suspects who allegedly attacked
police officer Aiptu Satar Tampubolon and stole his rifle in Serbelawan,
Simalungun regency on Aug. 24.
The suspects, identified as
Jeniper, Indra Jaya, Mukhtar and Agus Siregar, were caught in three
different places: Labuhan Batu regency, Medan and Tebing Tinggi. Police
seized the stolen gun from Agus.
Mashudi said that the suspects claimed that they were not terrorists.
“They
said they were just thieves, who liked to steal,” said Mashudi, adding
that the suspects violated article 365 and 351 of the Criminal Code,
which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment.