Mom says Oki 'was violent'

Mom says Oki 'was violent'

JAKARTA (JP): The mother of 32-year-old Harnoko Dewantono, the
triple murder suspect better known as Oki, once told the police
that her son was violent as a child, a court heard yesterday.

The mother, Sekartini Handijaya, failed to appear in court for
the fourth time yesterday, but the judge ordered the prosecutors
to read the statement she gave to the police during an
investigation last year.

"As a child, Oki often lost his temper. He kicked everything
in sight and threw glasses and plates," according to the
statement read by prosecutor Muhammad Yusuf.

"He had to have psychiatric treatment," said the statement.

Oki's former wife and a former girlfriend have also testified
to the violent character of Oki, who is standing trial for the
murder of three persons in Los Angeles between 1991 and 1992: his
younger brother Eri Tri Harto Dharmawan, his woman friend Gina
Sutan Aswar and Indian businessman Suresh Gobind Mirchandani.

Oki's lawyer, Henry Yosodiningrat, objected to the reading of
the statement to the police in court, stressing that her failure
to appear in court bespoke her unwillingness to testify in court.

But judge I.G.K. Sukarata overruled him, pointing out that
Sekartini cited "health problems" as the reason for her absence.

After the statement was read, Oki, responding to a question
from the judge said: "Almost everything she said was true." (16)