Indonesian Investigators Probe Video of Police Officer Gambling Online While on Duty

Investigators in Kalimantan, Indonesia, are looking into allegations that a serving police officer was caught gambling online while on duty, despite an ongoing crackdown on web-based betting platforms.

The Indonesian media outlet Antara News reported that witnesses say they saw an unnamed Indonesian National Police officer using an online gambling app while “passing through Pahandut Police station in a police vehicle.”

Police say that the witnesses were able to take a video of the incident, some of which has appeared on social media sites like TikTok.

The Palangka Raya Police Chief, Senior Commissioner Dedy Supriadi, told reporters: “We are moving quickly to clarify this matter. We are conducting a thorough internal investigation. Any information that appears in the public domain must be investigated objectively.”

Indonesian Police Officer: Gambling on the Job?

The Senior Commissioner said that the police force had questioned an officer who is “suspected of being the subject of the video.”

The officer in question is reportedly a traffic patrol specialist who has been driving a mobile unit since April this year.

However, a police spokesperson noted that, in the video, “the face of the person suspected of using the app was not clearly visible, making identification difficult.”

The spokesperson added: “If any violations are proven, we will prosecute according to the disciplinary provisions and the National Police Code of Ethics.”

However, the official added that the police would continue to presume the officer was innocent “until all the facts are clear.”

The official said that the Palangka Raya Police Department was committed to upholding the dignity of the force.

The spokesperson concluded: “We ask the public to be patient. We will conduct our investigation in accordance with the due protocols. If we uncover any violations, we will impose sanctions on those involved.”

Bad Timing for Police Force

The timing of the incident will be embarrassing for the police force. In recent weeks, President Prabowo Subianto visited the national police headquarters. During his visit, he told officers to make the country’s “total war” on online gambling a key priority.

Police chiefs across the country have also begun launching spot checks on their officers’ cell phones.

Superintendents say they check junior officers’ phones for evidence that they have downloaded illegal gambling apps.

They also check officers’ bank accounts and e-pay wallets to ensure they have not made deposits on illicit betting platforms.

Welfare Recipients Face Punishment for Gambling Online

All forms of betting remain illegal in Indonesia, with offenders facing increasingly strict punishment.

Hundreds of thousands of welfare recipients have had their benefits cut or suspended at the behest of the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK).

The PPATK is the top Indonesian anti-money laundering agency. It operates an automated transaction screening service. When this system detects evidence that a welfare recipient’s bank activities are gambling-related, it sends a cancellation order to their local welfare office.

The center says that since 2017, Indonesians have conducted online gambling-related transactions worth over Rp 976.8 trillion ($59.3 billion).