Adiguna's lawyers shift suspicion to key witness

Adiguna's lawyers shift suspicion to key witness

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Defense lawyers for Adiguna Sutowo challenged on Thursday all the
charges laid by the prosecution against him, arguing that they
were unfounded and not backed up by evidence.

During the hearing of defense pleas in the Central Jakarta
District Court, the defense said that the prosecutors had failed
to show that the murder weapon belonged to the youngest son of
former state oil and gas company Pertamina president Ibnu Sutowo.

"We would urge the court to acquit Adiguna Sutowo of all
charges of murder and possession of an illegal weapon," lead
defense counsel Mohammad Assegaf told the court, presided over by
Judge Lilik Mulyadi.

In an earlier session, the prosecutors had sought a life
sentence for Adiguna for the shooting to death of Johannes
Berchmans Haerudi Natong, a waiter working in Fluid Bar, and for
the illegal possession of the revolver allegedly used to kill the
victim on Jan. 1.

Reading the 100-page defense statement for almost two-and-a-
half hours by turns, the defense lawyers focused on the fact that
only one witness had testified to the court that the murder
weapon belonged to Adiguna.

"Only Werner Saferna, or Wewen, said that the firearm was
Adiguna's. One witness is the same as no witness, so in this
case, Wewen's testimony is inadmissible," said lawyer Amir
Karyatin.

The defense argued that as there were no fingerprints found on
the revolver, it could have belonged to someone else who was in
the same room at the time in question.

"The defendant told the court that he had handed his weapon
over to the police much earlier to have the firearms license
renewed. Besides, why believe Wewen, who kept the murder weapon
for five days and only then turned it over to the police, saying
it was Adiguna's?" said Amir.

Wewen handed over the weapon along with four bullets to the
police on Jan. 7, and told the police that Adiguna had given him
the revolver after Adiguna shot Natong.

The lawyers also pointed to the fact that no witnesses had
been called who said that had directly seen Adiguna pull the
trigger. Other bar staff, Cut Nina and Fajar Ramadhan, testified
that they had only heard a gunshot and seen a man wearing a long-
sleeved white shirt.

"Wewen was also wearing a long-sleeved white shirt," one of
the defense lawyers said.

"We also want to point out that there was not even a splatter
of blood found on Adiguna's shirt, while experts said that the
shooting took place within a range of 60 centimeters."

The lawyers also rejected the prosecutors' sentencing
recommendation.

The session began three hours late at about 1 p.m. after the
judges ordered that Adiguna be compelled to attend the hearing
even though he claimed he was receiving treatment at the MH
Thamrin Hospital for respiratory problems.

"The court has never given an order to hospitalize the
defendant," an angry Lilik said before issuing the order. (006)