Five elderly ladies have been detained by the Lingsar Police, West Lombok, for gambling.
The women with the initials WK, 75 years old; NR, 54 years old; KS, 57 years old; WT, 80 years old; and IWU, 81 years old, were caught playing a card game called “Ceki”. This game is popular in West Sumatra and is used as entertainment amongst older women in communities to bond. The game sometimes involves small wagers of various items
However, ceki is considered gambling, which is illegal under Indonesian law, so the Lingsar Police in Punikan hamlet, Batu Mekar village, Lingsar 2022 arrested the mature women while they were gambling last Thursday, 7th April.
The police found a deck of ceki cards and Rp64,000 in various denominations. The cash included two Rp10,000 notes, five Rp5,000 notes, four Rp2,000 notes, and a number of Rp1,000 coins.
“This is evidence that they were gambling,” said Lingsar Police Chief Iptu Riski Meirika on Friday 8th April.
During the investigation, the five perpetrators admitted to having gambled with ceki, which they claimed was just for fun. It is suspected that they often played ceki in one of the perpetrators’ houses.
“They are neighbours, the house distance between one player and another is not too far. Even if it’s a fad, if it’s called gambling, it’s still gambling,” added Meirika.
The stakes are never too high. During gameplay, the bet value is between Rp2,000-5,000.
From the evidence and confessions, they were charged under article 303 of the criminal code. However, it will be communicated later whether the grandmothers will serve custodial sentences or not.
“Everything is still in the process of being investigated,” said Meirika.