Oki interrogated by Jakarta police without lawyer
Oki interrogated by Jakarta police without lawyer
JAKARTA (JP): Harnoko Dewanto, alias Oki, was questioned by Jakarta police yesterday, without a lawyer being present, in connection with a triple murder in Los Angeles.
The city police's chief spokesman Lt. Col. Bambang Haryoko confirmed yesterday that under the law Oki had a right to have a lawyer present during the questioning.
But the suspect had waived that right, Bambang said.
He said it had been Oki who had insisted that he did not need a lawyer at this stage. Bambang added that Oki did not give any particular reason for his refusal to have a lawyer.
Bambang also denied the allegation, made by lawyers already appointed by Oki's family, that police had been denying Oki access to his lawyers. "There's no reason for us to stop lawyers meeting with their clients, provided they follow the proper procedures," he said.
There were conflicting reports yesterday about whether or not Oki had indeed appointed a lawyer. He is believed to have met with one or two of the city's top criminal lawyers but had not appointed any of them as at yesterday.
Two lawyers who are believed to have met with Oki during his police detention are Amir Syarifuddin and Hotma Sitompoel.
Oki's family, meanwhile, appears to have appointed lawyer Ruhut Sitompoel to represent Oki in the murder investigation. Ruhut is known to be closely associated with the powerful Pemuda Pancasila youth organization.
Ruhut was not available for comment yesterday but his assistant Tommy Sihotang confirmed that Oki's family had approached his firm regarding representation.
"We just need to tie up some loose ends before we sign the agreement to represent Oki, hopefully tomorrow (today)," Tommy told The Jakarta Post.
Tommy declined to divulge details of the agreement. "I've nothing to say at this moment, pending the final agreement," he said.
Pemuda Pancasila chairman Yorrys Raweyai, a close friend of Ruhut, meanwhile confided yesterday that the agreement was with Oki's parents.
He added that Ruhut and Tommy had tried to meet with Oki at the police station where he is being held, but that they had been denied access.
Oki was arrested on Jan. 7 in connection with allegations that he had forged a passport.
Over the weekend police expanded their investigation to include the allegation that Oki had committed the triple murder.
Oki has been named by the Los Angeles Police Department as the main suspect in their investigation of the murder of Gina Sutan Aswar, a young Indonesian woman; Oki's own brother, Edi Tri Harto Darwaman; and a laundry businessman of Indian origins. Their decomposed bodies were discovered in a Los Angeles storage locker last August. Police only managed to identify the victims last December.
Indonesian police have said that they have no intention of handing Oki over to the United States to face the murder charges there, given that there is no extradition treaty between the two countries.
They said Indonesian law permits an Indonesian court to try its own citizens for crimes allegedly committed overseas.
Two Los Angeles detectives, identified as Ted Ball and Edward Ramirez, are expected in Jakarta this week to help with the investigation.
The police investigation made little progress yesterday, Lt. Col. Bambang told reporters.
Bambang refused to comment further on the investigation, saying that any further information would have to come from city police chief, Maj. Gen. Mochammad Hindarto.
He added that the results of the investigation could take one more week. (bsr)