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.