Guterres 'told his men to retrieve surrendered guns'

JAKARTA (JP): Three Belu police officers and a retired Belu district military command officer testified on Monday that East Timor prointegration militia leader Eurico Guterres ordered his men to take back the firearms they had surrendered to the Belu police in East Nusa Tenggara in September of last year.

"The East Timorese militiamen had voluntarily surrendered their weapons on Sept. 23. But, they became furious on the following day," Chief Brig. Deni Mardani of Belu Police precinct, who was in charge of overseeing the handover of the firearms by Guterres' followers on Sept. 23, told the North Jakarta District Court.

He said that he saw that Guterres was very angry while leaving the Belu Police intelligence office room as he had just met with the East Nusa Tenggara Police chief and the operations assistant to the National Police chief.

"The police are not honest. What kind of scenario is this?" Deni said, quoting Guterres.

Brig. Immanuel Kawangmani, who was in charge of controlling the situation at the time, said Guterres came to the Belu Police station at the invitation of the Belu Police chief.

He said that he saw Guterres being escorted out of the Belu intelligence office by a National Police officer, Sr. Comr. Alfon.

Another witness from the Belu Police, Officer Simon Rekareu, similarly told the court that he saw that Guterres was angry and shouting at his men that the police were liars.

He said that he saw Guterres order his followers to seize back the firearms and surrender them to the Belu military district command, instead.

He also said that the handover of the firearms had proceeded peacefully on Sept. 23, without any obstacles being encountered.

Meanwhile, Antonio C. Santos, a retired Belu military district command officer who was assigned to the Belu district administration, also told the district court that the defendant was furious when leaving the office of the Belu Police intelligence chief.

"I saw Guterres ordering his followers to take back the firearms they had already surrendered to the Belu Police," he told the hearing, presided over by judge Suwardi.

Besides the four witnesses, the prosecutors also presented ten organic firearms as evidence before the panel of judges.

The hearing was adjourned until next Monday to hear other police officers' testimony. (01)