Driver of deadly bus to be tried soon

JAKARTA (JP): The trial of an inter-city bus driver involved in an accident which killed 31 passengers last March, will start on Thursday at the Bogor District Court.

Agus Arifin, the driver, is charged with causing the deaths of the passengers when the Kramatdjati bus crashed into stationary vehicles and burst into flames.

The victims were mostly bus passengers who failed to reach the single exit and burned to death.

A team of lawyers from GM Associates, who will defend the driver, said in press release distributed on Saturday that it regretted the lax procedures of the court.

The lawyers had not received the dossiers of the case, Ahmad Qorry, public relations officer for the law firm said.

"Actually we were informed the first hearing would be on June 8, and the second on June 13, but they were postponed because of the absence of the defendant's lawyers," Qorry said.

Monang Saragih, the head of the legal team, also regretted media reports which led to the violation of the principle of presumption of innocence.

Comments on the case said Agus faces 15 years in prison if found guilty of murder. He was reported to have admitted to police that he had taken barbiturates before getting in the driver's seat. (anr)