Lawyers ask court to free Robot

JAKARTA (JP): Lawyers defending a pedophile asked the Central Jakarta District Court yesterday to free the defendant, Siswanto, alias Robot Gedek, saying he had not been proved guilty as charged.

Lawyers Najib Khan and Febry Irmansyah told the court that none of the witnesses had testified that Robot was involved in the murder of six boys.

"The prosecutor had also failed to prove that the defendant sodomized the boys," Najib said.

The prosecutor had charged Robot, 33, who comes from Pekalongan, Central Java, with killing six boys between the ages of 11 and 15 after sexually abusing them.

Reading the 21-page defense statement, the lawyers also asked the court to give the defendant a psychiatric examination and release him from detention.

"The prosecutor also could not prove that the defendant knew the alleged victims, much less committing premeditated murder," Najib said.

Last week, state prosecutor Suriansah asked the court to sentence Robot to death for violating article 65 of the Penal Code.

During yesterday's hearing, Robot, with his usual black pants and white shirt, looked calm and inattentive, playing with his hands and scratching his face.

Outside the court Suriansah said he would stick to the death penalty.

"Robot was very brutal," Suriansah said.

"Robot also spoke well during the trial, and this showed that he is sane enough. He was able to speak about his childhood in detail. He does not need any psychiatric help," he said.

The court adjourned until May 20 for the verdict. (12)