Story By: Alex Cope, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
This convict who was released from prison on parole as the coronavirus pandemic widens has been re-arrested less than a week later after allegedly being caught drug trafficking.
The 29-year-old, named in reports only as Ikhlas, was given parole from Kerobokan Prison in the Badung Regency of Indonesia’s Bali province as part of a government policy to help stop the spread of COVID-19 by reducing prison numbers.
The policy meant it was possible to keep prisoners further apart using social distancing, and reduce the number of relatives that wanted to visit also risking bringing infections with them.
The country’s Law and Human Rights Ministry stipulated that prisoners who had served two-thirds of their sentence were eligible for parole, leading to around 30,000 convicts being released.
However, less than a week after being released on parole Ikhlas was arrested after cops intercepted a package of 2 kilogrammes of cannabis which had been sent from the city of Pekanbaru in the province of Riau.
The officers then arrested Ikhlas and former convict Bayu Tama Pangestu as they were allegedly about to pick up the package.
Pangestu was not on parole at the time.
I Putu Surya Dharma, spokesman for the Law and Human Rights Ministry’s regional office, said: “It’s only Ikhlas who is on parole due to [the new regulation related to] coronavirus.”
It is unclear if the pair have been charged yet.
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