Police deny torturing suspects in rape case

Police deny torturing suspects in rape case

JAKARTA (JP): City police have denied allegations that the 11
suspects involved in last month's robbery and brutal rapes in
Bekasi have been badly tortured by police investigators.

"There's no way for any of the investigators to torture the
suspects because a special team, made up of a number of selected
middle-ranking officers, was set up at the beginning of the
investigation process to supervise the process, as is required by
the law," secretary of the city crime investigation directorate,
Lt. Col. Edi Darnadi said yesterday.

The 11 suspects, believed to have robbed Acan's house and
brutally raped his 43-year-old wife and their two teenage
daughters, have reportedly sent a letter of complaint, through
their lawyers, to the government-sponsored National Commission on
Human Rights, alleging that they have been badly beaten by police
investigators.

According to Edi, the special team has been assigned to
strictly monitor the questioning sessions, security and the
compilation process of the dossiers.

"We're happy to invite executives of the commission to visit
the suspects, as long as it will not disturb our ongoing
investigation," said Edi.

The four-page letter, signed by lawyers Petrus Bala Pattyona
and Hendar Puji Astoro, from the Syaman Ritonga law firm, states
the 11 suspects have been inhumanely treated by investigators
during questioning sessions, to extract confessions from them.

Sriyana, an administrative staff member of the National
Commission on Human Rights set up by the government last year,
said the institution received the letter from lawyer Syaman
Ritonga on Monday.

"The letter is still on my table because we are waiting for
the arrival of Pak Baharuddin Lopa, who is expected to arrive
today from Ujungpandang (South Sulawesi)," he said.

Late in the evening, Lopa, the commission's secretary-general,
told The Jakarta Post by phone that he had not yet read the
letter.

"I have just arrived from Ujungpandang, so, at the moment, I
cannot comment on it," he said.

The 11 suspects, aged between 19 and 27, are identified as
Bon, Ind, Ar, Ma, Rok, Jam, Al, Iw, Ded, MA and Tam. Bon,
believed to be the mastermind behind the crime, is also a
relative of Acan, 45, a small-scale potato farmer.

When contacted yesterday, Bekasi police chief Lt. Col. Hari
Pribadi strongly denied the allegations, saying that the lawyers
are always allowed to accompany their clients during the
questioning sessions.

"I'm suspicious that there might be another party, who intends
to interfere in the ongoing investigation in order to get lighter
punishments for the suspects," Hari said.

Previously, National Police Chief Gen. Banurusman also gave
his assurances that the suspects would be fairly treated.

The suspects are being detained and questioned in separate
police precincts in Bekasi and Jakarta.

So far, police have yet to reveal the motive for the crime,
that has incurred the wrath of the public, with many demanding
that the suspects be sentenced to death.

Preliminary police investigations have revealed that Acan's
wife was raped once, while each of her 14 and 15-year-old
daughters were raped four times in the early morning of July 24
in their house. The house is located in a small, isolated village
in Bekasi, 30 kilometers east of here.

All of the suspects were arrested by police within a matter of
days after the crime. The success has earned the Bekasi police
precinct a special award from President Soeharto. The President
personally bestowed the Abdisatyabakti award on Captain Edward
Penong, chief detective of the Bekasi precinct, during a ceremony
at the State Palace a few days later. (bsr/imn)