JAKARTA: The Cenderawasih Military Police Command in Papua is currently questioning five Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel from the Cenderawasih Military Command Adjutant General’s (Ajendam) unit, allegedly involved in the sale of ammunition to armed civilian groups.
“Two of them have been proven to be directly involved, while three others are still undergoing interrogation. They provided ammunition to the armed civilian groups, which used it to shoot TNI and National Police personnel and civilians. They are traitors to the state, a thorn in the flesh, they are enemies within the military,” Cenderawasih Military Command chief Maj. Gen. Fransen G. Siahaan said at military headquarters in Jayapura on Thursday.
Since three TNI personnel were arrested in Wamena last year for selling ammunition to the armed group led by Puron Wenda, the military has intensified internal and external supervision. The group, which committed violence and vandalism, was active in the Pegunungan Tengah region in Papua.
“We uncovered the five traitors in an internal investigation. I didn’t expect them to come from this unit. In line with orders, soldiers involved in ammunition sales must be dismissed from the unit and punished severely, even sentenced to death, or to life in prison,” he stated.
Separately, Indonesian Military spokesperson Maj. Gen. Fuad Basya told The Jakarta Post that the military was very careful to safeguard its ammunition and it was impossible for soldiers to take bullets from the armory directly. Officers recorded the exact number of bullets removed from the armory and how many were returned.
He assumed the bullets that had been sold would have been secreted away during shooting training.
Two of the suspects were arrested by a TNI-police joint team while in a transaction with three members of an armed civilian group at Papua Trade Center in Jayapura on Jan. 28. The joint team seized 500 rounds of 5.56 mm caliber ammunition. The three other persons are believed to be involved in hoarding ammunition.
The evidence, said Siahaan, was still being examined to determine whether they came from the Ajendam unit or other units.
The five suspects, identified only by their rank and initials, are First Sergeants NHS, 25, and MM, 46, Privates First Class S, 27, and RA, 29, and Sergeant Maj. S, 39.
The suspects, added Siahaan, were currently undergoing intensive questioning to find out how many times they had sold ammunition to armed civilian groups and whether other soldiers were involved in the syndicate.
Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Yotje Mende confirmed that the 500 bullets purchased by the three civilians from the soldiers for Rp 10 million (US$793) were intended for the Puron Wenda group in Lanny Jaya regency.
“The three civilians were tasked with operating in the city to find ammunition and to deliver it to the jungle. They have been named as suspects for arms possession and charged with violating the Emergency Law,” said Yotje.
Separately on Thursday, two residents in Popome village, Popome district, Lanny Jaya regency, Papua, were shot by members of an armed civilian group at around 6 a.m.
The victims, Gurik Murib, 25, and Markus, 26, are employees of PT Nirwana. The armed group also set fire to an excavator.
When contacted by phone, Lanny Jaya regency secretary Chris Sohilait said the two victims had been taken to Wamena hospital in Jayawijaya regency for medical treatment.
