Connflicting testimonies in mark Ari's trial
Connflicting testimonies in mark Ari's trial
Emmy Fitri, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Witnesses gave conflicting testimonies during the trial of
former president Soeharto's grandson Ari Haryo Wibowo (alias Ari
Sigit) at the Central Jakarta District Court on Friday.
Presiding judge Heri Suwantoro even once raised his voice to
warn one of the witnesses, Ganjar Sutardi, the security guard at
Ari's house.
"Please be firm and strict to what you think is right because
your statements are far different from what you have told
police," Heri said.
Defendant Ari, wearing a light-green shirt, smiled and shook
his head as judge Heri aired his warning.
Ari, 31, is charged with illegal possession of firearms and
ammunition. If found guilty, he could face the death penalty or
be jailed for life.
Other witnesses who were summoned to give evidence were Comr.
Rohimat from the Jakarta Police detective unit, Aji Darmadi, the
secretary of the 01 neighboring group in Menteng, and Amir, a
security coordinator at Ari's house.
Ganjar said that on Aug. 13 police officers did not produce a
warrant to search Ari's house on Jl. Yusuf Adiwinata.
"I was sleeping at the other house and somebody woke me up
telling me there were policemen. I went to Pak Ari's house and
police were already inside the house," Ganjar said.
According to the judge, in his statement to police, Ganjar
said he had met with the officers at the front gate and was shown
a warrant before allowing the officers to enter.
Earlier, officer Rohimat, who once told the police that he
found the bullets inside a bag, told the hearing that he did not
see exactly where the bullets were when they were found.
When asked to comment on the conflicting statements made by
the witnesses, prosecutor Surung Aritonang said, "Maybe they
interpreted what the judges asked differently so they gave
different responses. Anyway, the questioning (with the police)
was a long time ago. They could not repeat exactly the same
sentences."
Surung also said the conflicting statements were not
substantial and therefore there was no need to focus on the
matters.
Meanwhile, one of Ari's lawyers, Juan Felix Tampubolon, said
they would seek support from a panel of judges to clarify the
conflicting matters.