Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) has confirmed that it will not impose any sanctions to eight members of the Presidential Security Detail (Paspampres) who have bought firearms illegally in the US.
TNI spokesperson Maj. Gen. Tatang Sulaiman said in contrast to a claim made by US authorities who said the gun purchase was illegal, the investigation findings by the military's internal affairs team found that no law was broken.
"The military police did the questioning and found no irregularities. From now on, we will assist them with the administrative work [of future gun purchases]," Tatang was quoted as saying by tempo.co on Saturday.
Citing the interrogation's findings, the firearms purchase was made to allow the detail to upgrade their skills in using rifles. "There is no indication that the rifles are being used for any criminal activity. Those rifles are for exercise to upgrade their arms capacity and capabilities," he added.
No details have been published regarding the number or type of firearms in question.
The case went public after a US Army soldier, Audi Sumilat, pleaded guilty to a US court on Wednesday for participating in a scheme to purchase guns from several US suppliers and later sell them to Paspampres personnel. Sumilat did not hold a license to export firearms, as the scheme was initiated in 2014, according to reports from the Associated Press.
Sumilat will be sentenced in October and could face five years in prison and a fine of US$250,000. Another suspect in the case has also been charged and is scheduled to face trial on July 19. (dmr)