Court asked to acquit Iranian

Court asked to acquit Iranian

JAKARTA (JP): Defense lawyers has asked the Central Jakarta
District Court to acquit an Iranian citizen on trial for heroin
possession.

They said in their final statement on Wednesday that their
client, who was charged with possessing and trafficking 155
heroin pills, was based on the fact that the prosecutor could not
prove the heroin pills belonged to the defendant.

And none of the witnesses could testify as to who was the real
owner, they said.

Mehdi Jarari, 28, a Teheran-based businessman, is being
charged under the 1976 Narcotics Law. The maximum penalty is
death but last week prosecutors demanded a 17-year prison
sentence.

The defense lawyers also said that during the interrogation
police officers did not use a translator or provide legal aid for
Jarari.

"That was a violation of the Criminal Code," they said.

Jarari was supposed to read his own defense statement but he
wrote it in Arabic and no one was able to translate it.

It has not been and never will be heard as the judge will
announce the verdict next week. (12)