Evidence sufficient to charge Adiguna, legal expert says

Evidence sufficient to charge Adiguna, legal expert says

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With the discovery of the gun allegedly used in the shooting
death Yohannes Berchmans Haerudy Natong alias Rudy at the Hilton
Hotel in Central Jakarta, police have all evidence and witnesses
they need to charge the sole suspect Adiguna Sutowo with murder.

Legal expert from the University of Indonesia Rudy Satrio said
that the police should immediately submit the case file to the
prosecutor's office and do not have to prolong the investigation
for no reason.

"Police already have people who have identified Adiguna as the
killer, they have recently obtained the gun used in the shooting,
and they have laboratory results on the gun and the bullet. So,
there is no reason to delay submitting the case," Rudy Satrio
told The Jakarta Post.

The police said on Friday that they would try to submit the
case to prosecutors within a week.

The police announced on Saturday that they had received the
gun used in the murder from a man identified as Wwn alias Sfr on
Friday night.

The gun is a black and silver Smith and Wesson revolver. Three
bullets, similar to the bullets found earlier in Adiguna's room,
were still in the gun.

Ballistic tests conducted subsequently confirmed that the
projectile found in Rudy's head came from the gun.

According to police, Wwn, who was standing a meter away when
the incident happened, was given the gun by Adiguna right after
the suspect shot Rudy. Afraid of being accused as the murderer,
Wwn walked away then disappeared for a week, but kept on
following up the news on the case, the police said.

"Finally, he returned the gun to clear his name and help the
police investigation," national police chief detective Comr. Gen.
Suyitno Landung Sudjono told the Post.

Suyitno said Wwn had admitted seeing Adiguna shoot Rudy on
Jan. 1 sometime at 3:30 a.m. at Hilton's Fluid Club Bar.

Earlier, at least three of 19 witnesses interrogated by the
police testified that it was Adiguna who shot Rudy.

"We are now guarding all the witnesses to protect them until
they testify in court. Their testimony may endanger their lives.
So, please help us protect the witnesses by not revealing their
full names. However, they are all in safe place right now,"
Suyitno told reporters.

Rudy Satrio said that all the police have to do is to get
testimony from experts to complete the case, and assign the
relevant articles from several laws.

"I think there will be no more problems. The police should
apply the right articles and laws while the prosecutors should
use the articles with the heaviest punishment, such as article
340 of the Criminal Code on premeditated murder with maximum
punishment of death," said Rudy Satrio.

Police have announced that they would charge Adiguna with
murder under Article 338 of the Criminal Code, which carries a
maximum penalty of 15 years, Article 1 of Emergency Law No.
12/1951 carrying the death penalty, and Article 59 of Law No.
5/1997 with a minimum punishment of 4 years in prison.