The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI.
Coordinator of Save Our Soccer Akmal Marhali posed with the Deputy Chief of the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency Inspector General Asep Edi Suheri after clarifying the report of alleged sponsorship or advertisement of football gambling at football matches and clubs competing in Liga 1, Thursday (13/7/2023).
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — After being rejected the previous day, a complaint about the alleged existence of a football club sponsored by gambling money has finally been received by the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency. Save Our Soccer as the reporter is committed to assisting the Anti-Mafia Football Task Force in eradicating fraud in football.
Save Our Soccer (SOS) coordinator Akmal Marhali when contacted, Friday (14/7/2023), said that his party submitted a report regarding the alleged existence of a football club sponsored by gambling money on Wednesday (12/7/2023), but was rejected. It was only the next day, Thursday (13/7/2023), Deputy Head Bareskrim Polri Inspector General Asep Edi Suheri contacted SOS to clarify.
Akmal then went to Bareskrim Polri to resubmit a complaint about an alleged advertisement for soccer gambling and a football club that was allegedly sponsored by an online gambling site. The complaint was accepted.
Also read: Report on Alleged Football Gambling Rejected, SOS Plans to Letter to President
Police Report Acknowledgement Letter number: STTL/268/VII/2023/Bareskrim and registered with Police Report number: LP/B/192/VII/2023/SPKT/BARESKRIM POLRI dated July 13th, 2023 was received by Save Our Soccer Coordinator, Akmal Marhali.
Akmal received a Police Report Receipt number: STTL/268/VII/2023/Bareskrim and registered with Police Report number: LP/B/192/VII/2023/SPKT/BARESKRIM POLRI dated 13 July 2023 with the reported Bimo Warja Soekarta as CEO Persikabo 1973 and Ferry Paulus who serves as the Main Director of PT LIB.
The alleged criminal offense reported is the dissemination of illegal gambling content or online gambling as regulated in Article 27 Paragraph (2) of Law No. 19 of 2016 concerning Amendments to Law No. 11 of 2008 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) or Article 303 of the Criminal Code (KUHP).
Akmal explained that the report he submitted was initially rejected due to a misunderstanding by the investigators who were on duty at the Integrated Police Service Center (SPKT) of Bareskrim. At that time, the officer assumed that Akmal had reported the same thing as the report filed on August 22, 2022. However, in the previous case, Akmal was only a witness because the report was filed by Rio Johan.
Save Our Soccer will support the Antimafia Ball Task Force because we hope that in the future our soccer will achieve success. For those who are aware of score manipulation and other crimes, please report them to the police.
Akmal appreciated the steps taken by Bareskrim Polri and Police Anti-Mafia Task Force for following up on his complaint. “Save Our Soccer will support the Anti-Mafia Football Task Force because we hope that in the future our football will excel. For people who know about score fixing and other crimes, please report it to the police,” he said.
In addition to the alleged fraud case, the police are also expected to pay attention to the alleged intimidation of several media personnel. Akmal admitted that he had received information about intimidation from someone claiming to represent a certain club to several mass media who requested that coverage related to alleged gambling in football not be published.
Separately, Head of Public Information Bureau of the Police Public Relations Division Brigadier General (Pol) Ahmad Ramadhan stated that the National Police does not reject the report from SOS. What actually happened is that the report submitted by SOS had already been reported to the National Police. “The report has the same defendant and object, so once again there is no rejection,” said Ahmad.
Head of the Public Relations Bureau of the Indonesian National Police Brigadier General Ahmad Ramadhan was met at the Public Relations Division of the Indonesian National Police office on Wednesday, June 7, 2023.
According to Ahmad, the officials have instructed to make a complaint letter addressed to Bareskrim. Later, the report from the Coordinator of SOS will be consolidated with the previous complaint.
Also read: Polri Finds Indication of Score Fixing
Chairman of the Indonesian Police Watch (IPW) Sugeng Teguh Santoso hopes that the handling of the complaints submitted by SOS can be a part of the improvement of Indonesian football and also eradicate gambling. Therefore, sponsors or things related to gambling can be eradicated from the world of football in Indonesia.
“The Indonesian Police Watch (IPW) is requesting that the National Police, through the Anti-Mafia Football Task Force, take firm and professional action to crack down on every alleged criminal activity in national football and process them in accordance with the law, in order to maintain public trust in the police,” said Sugeng.