In the Fugitive\'s Footprints: 8 June

It has been 11 years since Joko Tjandra became a fugitive. That morning, he was visiting the South Grogol Subdistrict Office on Jl. Kubur Islam to make an electronic identification (e-ID) card.

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

A copy of an electronic ID card in Joko Soegiarto Tjandra’s name issued on June 8. Joko Tjandra, a fugitive convicted in the Bank Bali corruption case, made the electronic card at the South Grogol subdistrict office on the same day he went to the South Jakarta District Court to file a an appeal with the court.

It is Monday, 8 June 2020, at 8:00 a.m. Four people get out of a car pulled in front of the South Grogol Subdistrict Office in Kebayoran Lama district, South Jakarta. One of them is Joko Tjandra, a fugitive who has been convicted in a case on the cession of Bank Bali’s debt collection rights.

It has been 11 years since Joko Tjandra became a fugitive. That morning, accompanied by a driver and his lawyer, Anita Kolopaking, he was visiting the South Grogol Subdistrict Office on Jl. Kubur Islam to make an electronic identification (e-ID) card.

Also read : Chance to Catch Joko Tjandra

On arriving at the office, Anita immediately contacted South Grogol subdistrict head Asep Subahan. Asep came down from his office on the second floor to the lobby. Three days earlier, armed with a letter of authority from Joko, Anita met with Asep to gather information on her client\'s citizenship data and status. On that Monday morning, Joko had come to the subdistrict office to register his e-ID data.

Asep immediately directed Joko and his lawyer into the citizenship services room, where he was served briefly. His photograph was taken, his fingerprints scanned, and his signature was affixed to the form. An e-ID card was issued in the name of Joko Soegiarto Tjandra. The e-ID card process was finished. The whole process took about 30 minutes.

Nobody knew (that Joko Tjandra was a fugitive). Because there was no alert in our system.

Asep and his subordinates at the South Grogol Subdistrict Office did not realize that the man they had just served was a fugitive who was pursued by the Attorney General\'s Office. "Nobody knew (that Joko Tjandra was a fugitive). Because there was no alert in our system," Asep said on Friday (3/7/2020) in Jakarta.

Asep only became aware of Joko’s legal status from the media over the last few days. "The Home Ministry and the Jakarta Police also asked about the arrival of that [particular] individual," he said.

Also read : Attorney General Promises to Catch Joko Tjandra

KOMPAS/DANU KUSWORO

Joko Tjandra

The citizenship service for processing Joko Tjandra\'s e-ID card at the South Grogol office, according to Asep, was not an indication of special treatment. The same service was provided for other people.

On asking local residents, however, they said that processing the e-ID card at the South Grogol Subdistrict Office usually took a month.

Filing a case review petition

After obtaining his new e-ID card, Joko and his lawyer then headed to the South Jakarta District Court on Jl. Ampera Raya. It is around 10 kilometers from the South Grogol Subdistrict Office to the South Jakarta District Court, which took 30-40 minutes to cover in a private vehicle.

In the yard of the South Jakarta Subdistrict Court, the pair met another member of the legal team, Andi Putra Kusuma. The three then headed inside to the South Jakarta District Court’s One-Stop Integrated Service (PTSP), carrying a file of documents they needed to file a petition for case review (PK) on the Bank Bali cession case. Joko’s newly issued ID card was among the documents.

Also read : Poor Coordination Gives Space for Fugitives

Suharno from the public relations section of the South Jakarta District Court said that the PTSP officers were busy checking the completeness of the submitted documents. Since the documents were complete, the file was handed to the clerk for issuing a petition letter.

The South Jakarta District Court served Joko like any ordinary citizen without anyone being aware of his status as a fugitive. "PTSP officials, the clerk, and others, in this case perhaps whether or not they understood correctly, people\'s knowledge, people\'s eyesight, or people\'s memories, it is not necessarily for them to always remember," Suharno said.

Muhtar, the South Jakarta District Court clerk who met Joko Tjandra in person on 8 June when he received the petition, was not seen at the court on Thursday (2/7). His office was empty. He was on leave and only returned to work on Monday (6/7/2020).

Kompas

Joko Tjandra\'s application for judicial review is shown at the South Jakarta District Court on Thursday (2/7/2020). After 11 years on the run, Joko Tjandra appeared in Jakarta to file a petition for review with the South Jakarta District Court on June 8. He then disappeared again. The Attorney General\'s Office is continuing to search for him.

Unmonitored

Joko Tjandra’s visits to the South Grogol Subdistrict Office and the South Jakarta District Court were also not captured on surveillance (CCTV) cameras. The South Jakarta District Court claimed that the footage from that day had been deleted because the court’s CCTV server only stored recordings for a week. Meanwhile, the court became aware of Joko’s visit only two weeks after 8 June.

The South Grogol Subdistrict Office has four CCTV cameras, but none of them recorded Joko\'s arrival because all four cameras had been broken for about three months. "This is because the maintenance budget (for the CCTV cameras) was diverted to Covid-19 mitigation," said Asep.

The reappearance of Joko Tjandra came into the media spotlight because he had been a fugitive of the state for 11 years. He fled abroad on 10 June 2009, the day before the Supreme Court sentenced him to two years in prison and a Rp 15 million fine.

This is because the maintenance budget (for the CCTV cameras) was diverted to Covid-19 mitigation.

The Attorney General\'s Office and the Immigration Directorate General of the Law and Human Rights Ministry coordinated in 2009 and discovered that Joko had fled to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. He departed on a chartered Challenger 604 aircraft with tail number N720US on the evening of Wednesday, 10 June 2009, from Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in East Jakarta, (Kompas, 19/6/2020).

Eleven years later, Joko "Joker" Tjandra entered Indonesia again without being flagged. It is not yet known exactly when the fugitive entered Indonesian territory, or the route he used.

Also read : The Cunning Fugitive Plays Tricks on Authorities

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

The home of Joko Tjandra, a fugitive convicted in the Bank Bali graft case, stands near Simprug Golf Course in South Jakarta on Friday (3/7/2020). After 11 years on the run, Joko Tjandra appeared in Jakarta to file a petition for review with the South Jakarta District Court on June 8. He then disappeared again. The Attorney General\'s Office is searching for him.

Joko Tjandra and his family are not staying at their residence on Jl. Simprug Golf 1 in Kebayoran Lama. Widodi, one of the security guards at the residence, said the house had been empty for the past two months that he had been there. The house is currently being renovated.

Joko’s lawyer Andi Putra claimed not to know when his client returned to the country, and that he had only met Joko for the first time at the South Jakarta District Court on 8 June to file the case review petition.

However, Andi changed his statement when it was confirmed on Saturday (4/7/2020) that Joko had obtained his e-ID card on 8 June. Andi then acknowledged that the legal team had also accompanied Joko to apply for the e-ID card, which was necessary to file the petition at the court.

Andi said that the legal team examined Joko’s citizenship data to ascertain his status as an Indonesian national, because the team was initially in doubt as to whether their client was a citizen of Indonesia or Papua New Guinea.