Philipus family opts to appeal verdict

JAKARTA (JP): The lawyers of a family recently found guilty of murder last year have filed appeals with the High Court.

"All three teams of prosecutors and two teams of defense lawyers have written to the High Court and asked for an appeal," sources at the East Jakarta District Court told The Jakarta Post yesterday.

The court ruled last week that the five suspects were guilty of brutally murdering a woman and her three children in the Bambu Apus subdistrict of East Jakarta on Oct. 2, last year.

Philipus, 47, a security guard, was sentenced to life by the team of judges led by Soenarto. Prosecutors had demanded capital punishment for Philipus.

Philipus' wife, Suparmi, 41, was sentenced to 20-years imprisonment. Prosecutors had also demanded she be sentenced to death.

Three minors, identified only as Albertus, 16, Lambertus, 15, and Clemence, 12, were each sentenced to 8 years in jail. Their team of prosecutors demanded that they be sentenced to 18 years for their involvement in the crime.

They were tried in three separate hearings.

One of the minors' lawyers, Risma Situmorang, yesterday told The Jakarta Post that her team would surely seek justice as they were confident that the defendants-minors were innocent.

"Don't you remember that we expressed our intention immediately following the judges' verdict?" Risma asserted.

One of Suparmi's lawyers, Jamaluddin Shofisa, said yesterday that they would declare their intention to appeal today, the last day left to announce an appeal after the verdict. He added that the team of lawyers were disappointed with the ruling.

"Several points to our client's advantage were not included in the judges' decision," Jamaluddin said.

A member of the team of prosecutors who handled Suparmi's dossiers, M. Hatta Renuat, on the other hand, said that the provincial Prosecutor's Office had approved their move to appeal the case.

Marathon hearings of the case revealed that the motive of the killing was the purchase of a piece of land on which the victims' house is located. Philipus' family, who live 200 meters from the victims' house, owns the land which surrounds the victims' house. (14)