Defense lawyers fear safety, revoke lawsuit in rape case

JAKARTA (JP): The defense lawyers of three suspects in the Acan robbery and rape case revoked their lawsuit against the Bekasi police yesterday, on the grounds that the authorities have failed to guarantee their security.

Yesterday's session was supposed to be the final stage of pretrial procedures being held to look into complaints lodged by the defense lawyers, who are suing the Bekasi police for illegally arresting the suspects in the Bekasi robbery and rape case.

Eleven suspects were arrested last month on charges of having robbed Acan and brutally raped his wife and two teenage daughters in a small, isolated village in the Bekasi area, 30 kilometers east of Jakarta.

Four lawyers, Petrus Bala Pattyona, Hendar Puji Astoro, Aidi Johan and Ismail were beaten by angry mobs during the last two sessions of the pretrial procedures last week.

The lawyers were stoned, beaten and kicked by a mob outside the courthouse. Police and anti-riot troop were barely able to protect them.

City police said on Monday that they would intensify security for the last session.

City police spokesman Lt. Col. Bambang Permantoro said the Bekasi Police District had prepared maximum security for yesterday's trial.

In a letter sent to Bekasi Court, the lawyers also stated that they regretted the judge's refusal of their demand to have the suspects attend as witnesses during the last sessions.

In the earlier session, Judge Asnahwati told the lawyers their request had been refused because the court considered the presence of the suspects irrelevant.

Yesterday's five-minute session disappointed the Bekasi police authorities, the suspects' parents, as well as the public, who had been waiting for the verdict.

Capt. Edward Syah Pernong, representing the Bekasi Police District, regretted the lawyers' decision.

"Why did they do it when the verdict was going to be read out," he said.

The parents of one of the suspects, Iwan, also complained about the lawyers' decision, especially since they were not told about it.

"We didn't know about the decision to revoke the lawsuit at all. We were not told," they said.

They said they wanted to know the final decision, even though they might loose.

Thousands of people had been waiting for the verdict outside the courthouse since morning. Some expressed their disappointment over the lawyers' absence. (01)