Drug-related minor convict sent home

photo by: Agung Parameswara

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Mon, 12/05/2011 11:20 PM

A 14-year-old Australian boy convicted of marijuana possession was deported at pre-dawn on Sunday after completing his two-month jail sentence. The boy and his family left the resort island at 1:05 a.m. local time aboard Virgin Blue DJ4146 flight heading for Sydney.

His homeward journey started on Sunday morning when he left the immigration detention facility in Jimbaran. Escorted by uniformed officials from the Denpasar Prosecutor’s Office and accompanied by his father, the boy was transported in a car to Kerobokan, the island’s largest correctional facility, to sign discharge documents and undergo the official release process.

The entourage arrived at Kerobokan at around 7:30 a.m. local time.

The boy, identified as L.A.M., was wearing a balaclava to cover his face.

His legal team, led by M. Rifan, accompanied him throughout the process, including having his photograph and fingerprints taken.

The process culminated when he signed the release papers.

“He has undergone all the required processes and is officially released today,” Kerobokan chief warden Siswanto announced.

Scores of immigration officials then picked up the boy and transported him to the immigration office at Ngurah Rai International airport.

At immigration, L.A.M. and his father were interviewed by the officials and underwent an immigration legal process related to his deportation.

After waiting for almost four hours at the immigration office, L.A.M. was finally taken into the airport’s international departure terminal.

The immigration authority placed the boy on its no-entry list. He would not be allowed to enter Indonesia for the next six months.

L.A.M.’s chief legal counsel, M. Rifan, stated that the boy was excited and joyful about his release.

“He was extremely happy knowing that he soon would be reunited with his family and friends. He was still feeling shock over the ordeal, but overall he was very happy,” Rifan said.

He also expressed satisfaction toward the manner with which L.A.M. was treated during his prison time, in particular the authority’s willingness to place him in a separate detention facility.

“We hope this will set a good precedent and that the authorities will follow this example in dealing with child inmates in Indonesia,” he said.

Throughout the trial L.A.M. was not detained at Kerobokan prison or the special detention facility for juvenile offenders in Karangasem. Instead he was placed in a 35 square meter room at the immigration’s detention facility in Jimbaran and allowed to be accompanied by his parents and to use a Playstation.

The decision to place him in that facility was made by no less than three high-ranking Indonesian officials — the National Police chief, Law and Human Rights Minister and the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister.

At that time 11 Indonesian children were jailed at Kerobokan prison in the same blocks as adult prisoners.

L.A.M. was arrested Oct. 4 on Padma Street, Kuta, by plainclothes narcotic detectives for having 3.6 grams of marijuana in his possession.

He confessed that he bought the illegal drug from an unknown person.

The fact that he is a minor soon turned the case into a high-profile media saga.

He was sentenced to two months imprisonment on Nov. 25 by a panel of judges presided over by Amzer Simanjuntak.

It was the lightest sentence the Denpasar district court has ever dispensed on drug-related offenses.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/12/05/drug-related-minor-convict-sent-home.html