Anger and uproar follow Bekasi gang rape verdict
Anger and uproar follow Bekasi gang rape verdict
JAKARTA (JP): Cries from family members, outbursts of anger from the defendants and public uproar followed the verdict handed down yesterday at the Bekasi district court, where the 11 men charged with gang rape and robbery were sentenced to between five and 14 years in prison.
The men, in three separate hearings, burst into fits of anger, beating wooden chairs and anything else nearby. They approached eager cameramen and media reporters, screaming they were not guilty.
"For God's sake I didn't do it," Taman said in front of TV cameras.
"The police used us, tortured us and forced us to admit to the crime," Iwan screamed.
But the panel of judges responsible for the verdict disregarded the claims. The defendants were accompanied by lawyer Saman Ritonga at the time of the police investigation and there were no signs of torture, added the judges.
The defendants and their family members continued to protest even after the judges had left the courtroom.
"See what they've done to simple people like us, who don't know anything about the law," an old mother cried in her son's embrace as the defendants were led to the detention room.
All 11 men were found guilty of robbing the family of Acan -- a poor farmer in Cimatis village, 30 km southeast of here, in July last year -- and of gang raping his wife and two teenage daughters.
The judges said they based their decision on witness testimonies and on the testimonies of Acan, his wife Ani, and his daughters Nunung and Acah, who said they recognized the faces of some of the defendants.
"The victims said they know them well because some of them are their relatives," judge Syamsudin said.
The defendants, between 17 and 23 years old, were sentenced according to their roles in the crime.
Bonen, said to have masterminded the crime, was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment. Mamat, Matalih and Aris Haryadi were sentenced to 12 years each, while Iwan Rezeki, Mochamad Ali, Indra Wijayadisaputra, and Jamal received 11-year sentences.
Dedy Setiawan, Taman, and Supriyatna were found not guilty of rape, but given five years imprisonment apiece for robbery.
"What did I do wrong? Kill me here now!" Bonen screamed.
Unlike the hundreds of people inside, the atmosphere outside the courthouse was much different. The crowd outside cursed the defendants as they were led under heavy security to a police van waiting to take them to jail in Bekasi.
"You should have been hung Boncel!" screamed a woman at the gate.
The defense lawyers said yesterday that they would bring the case to a higher court in Bandung, West Java's capital.
"The prosecutors investigated the case based only on the dossiers and did not take into account the facts offered by witnesses and defendants," one of the 15 defense lawyers said, adding that the court refused to hear the testimony of a defense witness named Amin, who allegedly has information about the crime.
The panel of judges said they rejected Amin because the defense's 10 witnesses, apart from the other eight proposed by the prosecutors, were enough. (03)