It (the reality) did not match with the agreement to send them as workers to a factory in South KoreaJakarta (ANTARA) -
Police have arrested one suspect in a case involving the trafficking of two Indonesian sailors, who recently jumped off a Chinese fishing vessel alleging ill-treatment.
The suspect allegedly recruited the sailors, promising them jobs in a South Korean factory, but they ended up working on a Chinese vessel instead, said police.
"We have arrested one suspect for human trafficking, identified as Syafruddin, in the case that ended with two sailors jumping off a ship," director of General Crime at the Criminal and Investigation Unit (Bareskrim) of the Indonesian Police, Brig.Gen Ferdy Sambo, said here on Thursday.
Syafruddin (44) was arrested at his house in Cileungsi in the Bogor District of West Java, Sambo added.
The police also seized the suspect's identity card and cellular phone and his bank passbook.
The case came under the spotlight after two Indonesian sailors jumped off Chinese fishing vessel Fu Li Qing Yuan Yu 901 while it was traveling in Karimun Island waters, Riau Islands, last week.
Riau Islands police officials traced the suspect's cellular phone and on Wednesday (June 10, 2020), they flew to Jakarta to nab him, in coordination with the Jakarta Police and the Indonesian Police's Bareskrim.
The suspect was arrested early on Thursday and detained at the Criminal and Investigation Unit for further questioning.
Preliminary investigation revealed the suspect had recruited some Indonesians and promised to place them in a factory in South Korea on suitable wages.
But, the recruits were exploited and made to work on a Chinese-flagged fishing vessel instead, said police. They were also not paid for their work on the ship, they added.
"It (the reality) did not match with the agreement to send them as workers to a factory in South Korea," Sambo said.
On Friday, two crew members, identified as Reynalfi (22) and Andri Juniansyah (30), jumped off the fishing vessel. After about seven hours, they were rescued on Saturday by a group of fishermen from the Tanjung Balai Karimun regency in the Riau Islands.
According to a report by the Indonesia Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW), the two crew members decided to jump off the ship because they could not withstand their treatment on board.
It said they had been intimidated and physically harmed, either by the ship’s captain or by fellow crewmen.
According to DFW data, at least 30 Indonesian crew members were victims of such violations on board Chinese vessels between November, 2019 to June, 2020. Seven of them reportedly died, three remain missing, and 20 survived.
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Translator: Anita Permata D, Sri Haryati
Editor: Gusti Nur Cahya Aryani
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
