Eurico to file pretrial suit against police

JAKARTA (JP): Prointegration East Timor militia leader Eurico Guterres plans to file suit against the National Police for arresting him on Wednesday morning without following legal procedures, his lawyer Suhardi Somomoeljono said on Thursday.

According to Suhardi, the police failed to show a warrant when they arrested Eurico in a hotel room in Central Jakarta, adding that a warrant was only presented by the police later in the evening.

"It's also strange that the police didn't arrest Eurico immediately after they claimed he had committed the crime," the lawyer told reporters after seeing his client, who is being detained at National Police Headquarters.

The police have accused Eurico of ordering his militiamen to repossess their firearms after a ceremony in which they surrendered them to the police in Atambua, East Nusa Tenggara, on Sept. 24.

The ceremony was attended by Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who was on a visit to the region.

According to Suhardi, the police accusation is baseless. He quoted his client as saying that none of the people who initiated the action were his followers.

The mob, the lawyer said, became angry when the police refused to do a symbolic handover of the guns to the police with Megawati looking on and subsequently took back several guns.

"Eurico, who was officially invited by the police to the ceremony, was inside the police headquarters when the incident happened. It was impossible for him to have ordered the repossession," Suhardi said.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Saleh Saaf said on Wednesday that at least 15 firearms, consisting of standard military rifles and homemade weapons, had been stolen from the police headquarters upon Eurico's instructions.

National Police chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro said Eurico would be charged under Article 160 of the Criminal Code for instigating a crime. The article carries a maximum sentence of six years imprisonment.

Separately on Thursday, deputy head of National Police criminal investigation Brig. Gen. Ansyaad Mbai said that the police had followed legal procedures in arresting Eurico.

"The arrest was backed up with preliminary evidence and the police personnel had an arrest warrant in their possession when they arrested him," Ansyaad said during a news conference at city police headquarters.

"Maybe Eurico's lawyer just did not see it," Ansyaad said.

Saleh said that Eurico was expected to appear on Friday for questioning at the Attorney General's Office as a suspect in human rights abuses in East Timor last year. (jaw)