JAKARTA: After weeks of investigation, the Central Java Police have named one of their officers, identified only as Brig AK, a suspect in the alleged killing of his two-month-old baby earlier this month.
Central Java Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Artanto said investigators decided to upgrade AK's status to suspect after questioning several witnesses, including the baby's mother and a forensic doctor who conducted the autopsy.
He was charged with violating Article 388 and Article 351 of the Criminal Code on murder and assault, as well as Article 80 of the Child Protection Law, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison," he said on Tuesday (March 25), as reported by Kompas
Artanto, however, declined to elaborate on the results of the baby's autopsy or the motive behind the alleged murder. He added that authorities are in the process of completing the case files to be forwarded to the prosecutors' office.
According to Artanto, AK is currently being held at the Central Java Police’s Internal Affairs Division (Propam) until mid-April, after which he will be transferred to its General Crime Investigation Directorate detention facility, in a cell designated for National Police members.
In addition to the criminal case, the Central Java Police will bring ethics charges against AK, though the timeline for a hearing remains unclear.
AK is accused of murdering his baby, identified only as NA, on March 2 at around 2:30pm in Peterongan Market, Semarang, Central Java.
According to NA’s mother, DJP, she left the baby with AK in his car while she went shopping at the market. After about 10 minutes, DJP returned to find NA limp with blue lips. AK told her that the baby had choked on his own vomit.
In a panic, DJP urged AK to take NA to the nearest hospital. NA was treated in intensive care for a day before passing away. The baby was buried in AK’s hometown of Purbalingga, Central Java, at the officer's request.
After the funeral, DJP became suspicious of AK's behaviour. He left their home without informing her and became difficult to contact.
DJP then reviewed a photo of NA taken shortly before the incident and noticed that his lips appeared normal. This prompted her to report the incident to the Central Java Police on March 5, which led investigators to immediately exhume the baby’s body.
DJP also alleged that, before the incident, AK had attempted to harm NA, although she declined to provide further details on the accusation.
Additionally, DJP stated that she received multiple threats after filing the police report, with unidentified individuals pressuring her to drop the charges.
AK's case adds to a growing list of violent acts allegedly committed by police officers in recent months.
On March 14, the National Police named Adj. Sr. Comr. Fajar Widyadharma Lukman, former chief of the Ngada Police in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), a suspect in the alleged sexual abuse of three minors, aged six, 13 and 16, as well as a 20-year-old woman.
The incident came to light after Australian police alerted Indonesian authorities, claiming to have discovered a video of the assault on a local pornographic website.
In December of last year, the Central Java Police dismissed Second Adj. Insp. Robig Zaenudin and named him a suspect after he allegedly shot three high school students riding motorcycles in a road rage incident, killing one of them. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
