Jakarta (ANTARA) - Army Chief of Staff, General Andika Perkasa, has hinted he supports the Witness and Victim Protection Agency’s demand for protecting witnesses and victims of an attack on Ciracas police station, East Jakarta, in August, 2020.

erkasa said on Saturday he had issued a directive to the Indonesian Army's director for legal affairs, Brig.Gen.Tetty Melina, asking her to chart alternate mechanisms for situations that might, for instance, require the witnesses and victims to be present in court.

Instead, they could be allowed to participate in court proceedings through video conferencing, during which, they would only be seen by the court's panel of judges, he said, while commenting on the demand for witness and victim protection that the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) officials echoed at a recent meeting.

Around 1.45 a.m. local time on August 29, 2020, about 100 persons allegedly attacked the Ciracas police station in East Jakarta.

They allegedly vandalized several facilities and set them ablaze around 2 a.m. local time, according to the East Jakarta Fire Information Service. Several cars and carts parked on the street were also reportedly damaged in the attack.

The attack was the second of its kind to have occurred since December 11, 2018, when a group of unidentified people had attacked the police station.

Chief of the public relations services of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police, Commissioner Yusri Yunus, said officials were still probing possible links between the two incidents.

In connection with the case, 12 army personnel were reportedly detained at the Jakarta Military Command's Military Police Detachment (Pomdam Jaya).

In a recent statement on the attack, Indonesian Military (TNI) Commander, Air Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, revealed that three of the 12 army personnel had admitted to vandalizing several vehicles during the early morning attack.

Responding to the attack, Coordinating Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD demanded that the investigation be handled properly and in accordance with existing laws. (INE)

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