Dutch couple quizzed over Munir case

Dutch couple quizzed over Munir case

JAKARTA: National police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said on
Friday that a team of police investigators have questioned two
Dutch nationals who sat next to human right activist Munir, who
was apparently poisoned on Sept. 7, 2004, during a flight from
Jakarta to Amsterdam.

The two Dutch citizens, identified as Lie Kian Wang and his
wife Lie Fong, were seated in the economy class compartment next
to Munir when Pollycarpus Budihari Priyatno, a Garuda pilot who
has been declared a suspect in the case, offered Munir a seat in
business class during the first leg of the flight from Jakarta to
Singapore.

Da'i said that the police investigators had not obtained any
important new information from the couple, and that they only
confirmed what the police investigators already knew from
statements made by Pollycarpus and other witnesses.

"They did not pay much attention to Munir during the flight,
but they said that the person named Pollycarpus had taken Munir's
seat (during the Jakarta-Singapore leg of the trip)," Da'i said.

Police investigators had initially hoped they would be able to
obtain new leads from the couple. --JP