Legal Literacy - Recently, the term Operasi Tangkap Tangan (OTT) or Hand-Catching Operation has once again come into the spotlight. Every time law enforcement (especially the KPK) succeeds in carrying out an OTT, public attention is immediately drawn to the event as proof that the law is still working. However, the term OTT is often used in news reports without understanding its legal meaning. Many think that this term is directly stated in the law, but it is not. Legally, the basic concept has long been known through the term “caught in the act” in the Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP). To understand the difference, we need to see how the law explains the meaning of being caught in the act and how the OTT practice is carried out.

What is Operasi Tangkap Tangan (OTT)?

In simple terms, Operasi Tangkap Tangan (OTT) is an act by law enforcement to arrest someone while they are committing a crime, or immediately after the crime occurs. Usually, OTT is carried out after law enforcement obtains strong evidence through investigation (for example, through wiretapping or reports). The main goal of OTT is to catch the perpetrators “red-handed” so that evidence of the crime is not removed. Criminal law expert Eddy O.S. Hiariej once explained that OTT is basically a practice of the concept of “caught in the act”. Although the term OTT is not written in the KUHAP, in substance…