A woman in Bekasi, West Java had to act and catch her daughter’s molester by herself due to alleged police inaction, winning praise for herself and public condemnation against law enforcement.
The woman, identified as 34-year-old DN, recently learned from her 11-year-old daughter S that she had been molested by a neighbor, a 35-year-old male identified as A. The suspect reportedly lured children in the neighborhood, including S, to his home with pocket money and touched them inappropriately.
DN reported A to the Bekasi Metro Police on Dec. 21. A medical examination on S revealed that her genitals had been violated by A.
DN demanded that officers arrest A immediately because she had caught wind that he was planning to escape to Surabaya, East Java.
“[The officer] told me to catch [A] myself. So my younger sibling and I reported [A] to officers at the Bekasi train station to apprehend him,” DN said, adding that A was about to board a train out of the city when they caught him.
“It should have been the police chasing after him, not me. He was about to escape and [the Bekasi Metro Police] didn’t care; there was not one accompanying officer from them [during the arrest].”
Bekasi Metro Police Chief Aloysius Suprijadi responded to DN’s accusations, saying the station was still investigating the case at the time of A’s capture.
“We received the report [from DN], and then we were completing the investigation, such as with the medical exam, among other things,” he said.
“The next day, the victim’s family found out that the suspect was at Bekasi Station. So the suspect was apprehended. Maybe that’s why the family complained.”
The Jakarta Metro Police, which is above the Bekasi Metro Police on the chain of authority, says it may sanction the officer who told DN to catch A by herself, but it first needs to verify the allegations of police inaction.
Curiously, the Bekasi Metro Police yesterday posted a short clip on Instagram of DN at the police station, apologizing for the allegations that were made.
“I am sorry because I was upset the other day,” she said.
At any rate, A has been charged with child molestation under the Criminal Code and Child Protection Act, which carries a maximum punishment of 15 years in prison.
