Hearing on Response to Exception in Bank Branch Head Murder Case Scheduled for 15 April
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Military Court II-08 Jakarta has scheduled a hearing for the reading of the official response to the defence team’s exceptions in the case of the alleged kidnapping and murder of a bank branch head (kacab) with the initials MIP (37) on Wednesday (15/4) next year.
The Military Prosecutor from the Oditurat Militer II-07 Jakarta, Major (Chk) Wasinton Marpaung, stated that his side will prepare an official response for the next hearing.
“On the hearing date of 15 April 2026, the agenda to be carried out is our response to the exceptions, from the Oditurat Militer II-07 Jakarta team,” said Wasinton after the reading of the defendants’ exceptions at the Military Court II-08 Jakarta, Cakung, East Jakarta, on Monday.
After the hearing, Wasinton conveyed that today’s proceedings had gone according to the set agenda, namely listening to the exceptions from the defence side.
“For today, we have conducted the hearing with the agenda of reading the exceptions from the defendants’ legal team,” Wasinton stated.
He explained that his side could not yet disclose the content of the exception response, as it is still in the preparation and deepening stage.
According to him, all points of objection raised by the legal counsel will be thoroughly examined before being officially presented at the hearing.
“Regarding the exceptions, we will outline them in the response that we will read on the 15th. Of course, the content cannot be shared now,” Wasinton said.
“The preparation will naturally address in detail all the exceptions from the legal counsel. We also need to consult with our leadership on what will be included in the response later,” Wasinton clarified.
Furthermore, Wasinton emphasised that in principle, the prosecution will continue to uphold the indictment that has been prepared.
This forms the basic stance in responding to the objections raised by the defence.
“No matter what, the indictment we have prepared will certainly be maintained,” Wasinton asserted.
Nevertheless, Wasinton refrained from speculating on whether the exceptions would be accepted or rejected by the panel of judges.
He stated that this is entirely within the authority of the panel of judges after considering all aspects presented at the hearing.
“For that possibility, we’ll see during the hearing. That’s part of the ongoing legal process,” Wasinton remarked.
The next hearing on 15 April 2026 is expected to be a pivotal moment, as the prosecution’s response will determine the direction of the subsequent trial process, including whether the case will proceed to the proof stage or not.
The prosecution also invited media personnel to continue following the trial proceedings to obtain complete and balanced information regarding the case.
Meanwhile, the legal team for the defendants in the alleged kidnapping and murder case of a bank branch head in Jakarta firmly requested that the panel of judges annul the indictment submitted by the Oditurat Militer II-07 Jakarta.
In addition to requesting the annulment of the indictment, the legal team also petitioned for the case costs to be borne by the state.
In closing the exceptions, they quoted a classic legal proverb emphasising the importance of protecting the rights of the accused.
“‘It is better to free a thousand guilty persons than to punish one innocent person’, and if the panel of judges holds a different view, we request the fairest possible decision,” said Nugroho.
In their exposition of the exceptions, the legal team highlighted the substance of the indictment, which they deemed to fail to meet the requirements as stipulated in the military criminal procedure law.
According to the legal counsel, this lack of clarity is evident from the narration of the criminal events, which is not detailed, particularly in linking the defendants’ actions to the elements of the charged criminal offence.