Police arrest six more STPDN students over Wahyu's death

Police arrest six more STPDN students over Wahyu's death

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

Police in the West Java regency of Sumedang said on Wednesday
that they had officially charged six more students from the
Public Administration Institute (STPDN) for their alleged
involvement in last week's killing of fellow student Wahyu
Hidayat.

The new detainees bring the number of suspects to nine - all
of who were students at the time of the killing -- currently
being held at the Sumedang police office. The police had
previously questioned at least 50 students in connection with the
tragic death.

Sumedang Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Yoyok Subagyo said that
investigators had discontinued the questioning of one student
Hedrik Mayor, who had earlier confessed to his role, due to what
Yoyok claimed to be a lack of evidence. The police earlier had
announced that there were the first three suspects but it now
seems there were actually four, including Hedrik.

It is not clear why the police failed to identify him earlier.

"Hedrik's earlier confession (of his involvement in the
incident) has not been substantiated by statements from other
witnesses," he stated.

Yoyok denied speculation that the decision to drop Hendrik's
suspect status, was because the student was rumored to be a son
of an Army general.

The six newly named suspects have been identified as Oktaviano
Minang Santoso, Dena Rekha Febriyanto, Yopi Maulana Abdillah,
Deki Suwandi, Gema Awal Ramadhan and Bangun Robinson Napitupulu.

The remaining three suspects -- Yayan Sofyan, Dadang Hadi
Surya and Hendi Setiadi -- had officially been charged on Sept.
4, 2003. They were expelled from STPDN, which is run by the
Ministry of Home Affairs.

The six new suspects reportedly tried to resist arrest on
Tuesday, challenging police officers to produce arrest warrants.

The suspects eventually gave themselves up to the police after
Yoyok directly intervened to tell them that he had sent the
arrest warrants to STPDN administrator Soetrisno.

Wahyu, 20, died on Sept. 2, 2003 after apparently being
beaten and strangled by older students at the institute, which
has a reputation for tough, militaristic discipline.

According to some accounts Wahyu was receiving punishment by
the older students because they alleged that he was being
disloyal for not showing up at patriotic functions, including an
annual meeting with the West Java governor, and perhaps a flag-
hoisting ceremony to mark the country's Independence Day on Aug.
17, according to Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno.

Yoyok added that the police were revising the dossiers on the
suspects due to suspicions that most of the students had
conspired to give false testimony about the events surrounding
Wahyu's death.

The new dossiers will include evidence that Wahyu, a second-
year student from West Java, was beaten along with 49 other
classmates by about 50 older students from the same province, he
added.

"Wahyu's friends admitted that they were hit in the stomach
and several other parts of their bodies. But Wahyu sustained
serious injuries ... because he was hit in the neck," Yoyok
explained, while adding that the victim suffered from asthma and
it could have flared up.

However, an autopsy of the deceased's body showed that Wahyu
died of apparent strangulation, but none of the suspects and
witnesses could confirm that finding, Yoyok added.

Meanwhile, hundreds of other students were prevented by
lecturers from holding a protest rally at the STPDN campus on
Wednesday.

They were apparently angered that the administration,
specifically the dean, had expelled those who have been charged
in the killing of Wahyu, as well as a general lack of protection
for students.