Police deny unlawful arrest of former E. Timorese leader

JAKARTA (JP): The National Police demanded on Monday that the South Jakarta District Court reject a pretrial lawsuit filed by the former East Timor militia leader Eurico Guterres, saying that his arrest had been carried out in line with normal procedures.

Lawyers representing the police said that the plaintiff was arrested based on the arrest warrant No. Pol. SPP/88/X/2000 Korserse and the detention warrant No. Pol. SP.Han/39/X/2000 dated Oct. 4.

"Eurico's arrest as a suspect was conducted according to the procedures as stipulated in Article 18 of the Code of Criminal Procedure," one of the police's lawyers, Sr. Insp. Rudy Heriyanto, told the hearing on Monday.

Eurico was arrested on Oct. 4 for having ordered fellow ex- East Timorese militiamen to repossess weapons they had surrendered earlier during an arms handover ceremony in Atambua in East Nusa Tenggara which abuts East Timor on Sept. 24.

The incident marred the visit of Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri to Atambua.

Eurico's lawyer, Suhardi Sumomulyono, filed the lawsuit last week against the police whom he said came to his client's hotel room in Central Jakarta and merely invited him to police headquarters to discuss the problems in West Timor.

But once he was there they told him that he was under arrest.

Rudy said on Monday the police had shown an arrest warrant to the suspect before he was taken to National Police Headquarters for questioning.

A copy of the warrant was also sent to the suspect's family through Suhardi and was signed by Suhardi on Oct. 4, he said.

According to Rudy, police arrived at the hotel at 10.30 a.m. to explain to Eurico the circumstances of the case while showing him the arrest warrant.

"After the suspect understood, police took him to National Police Headquarters for questioning," he said.

"Besides fears that he could flee or tamper with evidence, police also suspected that he might commit another crime."

Eurico's arrest had also been demanded by the Belu police precinct in East Nusa Tenggara while the Atambua prosecutors' office has stated that a probe into Eurico's alleged role in the Sept. 24 incident had been started.

Rudy said the police had questioned several witnesses before arresting Eurico. Based on their testimony, police concluded that Eurico had broken Article 160 of the Criminal Code which threatens those who commit or help in the commission of a crime with a maximum sentence of six years in jail.

Presiding judge I.D.G. Putra Yadnya adjourned the pretrial motion until Tuesday to hear Eurico's counter arguments.

Meanwhile, Suhardi told journalists after the hearing that Eurico through his lawyer would this week make a report to the police on the crimes committed by members of the Jose Alexandre Xanana Gusmao-led National Council for East Timor Resistance (CNRT) against Eurico's family between 1997 and East Timor's vote for independence last year.

Suhardi said the Indonesian government should have the courage to demand Gusmao's extradition for the crimes, just as the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) had sought the extradition of Eurico for his alleged role in the East Timor debacle last year. (01)