Suspect In The Smuggling Case Of Bangladeshi Citizen To Australia Arrested

The suspect in the Bangladeshi citizen smuggling (WN) case to Australia was named Panjul Talla when he arrived at the NTT Police Headquarters. BETWEEN ANTARA/Kornelis Kaha

The suspect in the smuggling of Bangladeshi citizens (WN) to Australia named Panjul Talla alias Panji (38) is threatened with 15 years in prison after being arrested in Bali on Thursday (30/1).

"The suspect is threatened with 15 years in prison for being charged with various articles," said Head of Public Relations of the NTT Police, Kombes Henry Novika Chandra, quoted by ANTARA, Friday, January 31.

Panjul Talla was charged with Article 120 paragraph (1) of the Republic of Indonesia Law Number 6 of 2011 concerning immigration in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) of the 1st Criminal Code

Hendry said the suspect had been detained since Friday (31/1), and would be detained for the next 20 days.

He added that a number of witnesses had been examined in this case, including the village head of Kolobolon, the first eyewitnesses, several Bangladeshi foreigners, and expert witnesses from Immigration.

Hendry emphasized that his party will continue to take firm action against all forms of human smuggling crimes that harm Indonesia and the international community.

"We are committed to maintaining state sovereignty and upholding the law as fairly as possible," he said.

Panjul was arrested in Bali, after the investigation team of the NTT Police Ditreskrimum investigated the case of this person smuggling since November 2024.

The suspect was only arrested on Thursday (30/1) yesterday while bidding for Kanda. The suspect fled after successfully returning 15 Bangladeshi foreigners to Rote Ndao, after previously being expelled by Australian water authorities.

Now the investigation process is still ongoing to reveal other perpetrators behind the TIP case, which is rife in the NTT region.