Military officers get prison term for acid attack against Andrie Yunus
“The defendants are found guilty of committing the crime as charged and involved in a premeditated attack that caused major injuries,” presiding judge Colonel Fredy Ferdian Isnartanto said while reading the verdict at the II-08 Military Court here on Wednesday.
Second Sergeant Edi Sudarko was sentenced to three years in prison, while First Lieutenant Budhi Hariyanto Widhi received a sentence of two and a half years. Both were also dishonorably discharged from the military for their roles as the principal perpetrators of the acid attack.
Meanwhile, Captain Nandala Dwi Prasetya was sentenced to two years in prison, while First Lieutenant Sami Lakka received a prison sentence of one and a half years.
The presiding judge found that the defendants attacked Yunus to give him a “lesson” not to “insult the Indonesian Defense Forces” anymore.
According to Colonel Isnartanto, the defendants believed Yunus had “insulted” the military by interrupting a deliberation on the revision of the military law in Jakarta on March 16, 2025.
The defendants resented Yunus further due to the activist’s anti-militarism narratives and actions, including requesting a constitutional review of the revised Military Law as well as accusing the military of intimidating KontraS and being behind the riots during the August 2025 protests.
Driven by their resentment toward Yunus, they conspired to attack him with acid, fully aware that it would inflict grave injuries. The presiding judge remarked that such conduct was unbecoming of military officers.
The assault took place on March 12 in Central Jakarta, as Yunus was riding a motorcycle after attending a podcast on militarism and the judicial review of military law, organized by the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI). He was promptly rushed to a hospital for treatment.
Initial CCTV footage showed the assailants approaching Yunus on a motorbike before throwing corrosive liquid at him, leaving the activist with burns on his limbs and visual impairment.
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Translator: Agatha Olivia V, Nabil Ihsan