Donny gets nine years for drug possession

JAKARTA (JP): A judge at the West Jakarta District Court on Monday sentenced defendant Donny Hendrian to nine years in jail for possessing and transporting narcotic and psychotropic substances.

The court also ordered the defendant, who was caught with the drugs while in the company of Army Second Lt. Agus Isrok, to pay a fine of Rp 200 million (US$27,000).

"The defendant has been proven guilty of violating Article 78 of the 1997 Law on Narcotics and Article 62 of the 1997 Law on Psychotropic Substances," said presiding judge Hadi Lelana in a hearing at the district court.

Only a few spectators and journalists attended the one-hour hearing that started at 2:30 p.m.

The articles the defendant was charged under are the same articles a military prosecutor used to charge Agus Isrok, a son of former Army's chief of staff Gen. Soebagyo Hadisiswoyo, in the first hearing of his case at the Jakarta Military Court last Friday.

Article 78 of the narcotics law carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in jail and a maximum fine of Rp 500 million ($67,500). Article 62 of the Law on Psychotropic Substances carries a maximum sentence of five years in jail and a maximum fine of Rp 20 million.

In the previous hearing, prosecutor Ferry Mupahir demanded the district court sentence Donny, an entrepreneur, to 13 years in jail.

Donny and Agus, a member of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus), were arrested by West Jakarta Police detectives at a hotel on Jl. Mangga Besar on Aug. 8 last year in an early morning raid.

The police seized from the room 3.7 kilograms of shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine), 6,218 ecstasy pills, 27.9 grams of heroin and 25 sachets of Valium pills.

In Tuesday's hearing, Judge Hadi said Donny was the owner of drugs.

"The defendant rented the room," said Judge Hadi, adding that belongings in a hotel room which did not belong to the hotel obviously belonged to the guest renting in the room.

He rejected the prosecutor's initial indictment which accused Donny of being a drug trafficker.

"There are no witnesses to testify that the defendant is a drug trafficker," he said.

Prosecutor Ferry said in the initial indictment that the defendant had also violated Article 59 of the 1997 Law on Psychotropic Substances concerning trafficking in psychotropic substances, namely ecstasy pills and shabu-shabu, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in jail and a maximum fine of Rp 750 million (US$101,350).

Upon hearing the verdict, Donny's lawyer Johannes Wiratno said his client would appeal the verdict.(asa)