Citibank Debt Collectors Convicted for Roles in Debtor's Death Declared Fugitives

Two Indonesian men convicted of killing a man they were interrogating about a debt failed to appear after being ordered into detention. Officials in the country now consider the men to be fugitives.

The two men, Arief Lukman and Henry Waslinto, were collectors for a private debt collection agency in March 2011 when they questioned local politician Irzen Octa over unpaid credit card bills at a Citibank Indonesia office in South Jakarta. Octa died in the room.

After an investigation that led to sanctions, against Citi’s debt collection practices in the country, three men were arrested for their roles in the death and convicted of contributing to his death. The third man, Donald Haris, is currently serving a five-year jail sentence.

But the three appealed the conviction and were released during the process, causing controversy in the country, according to the Jakarta Globe. Haris was held in detention to answer for another crime. When Lukman and Waslinto were called back in to appear before officials last week, they failed to show.

At trial, prosecution failed to prove that Octa was assaulted before his death, meaning that the debt collectors had no direct role in his passing. Rather, the three were convicted of “unpleasant conduct” for detaining and harshly questioning Octa over the $11,000 credit card debt.