Policeman faces 15 years in jail
Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh, Aceh
A policeman here has been threatened with 15 years imprisonment for the alleged fatal shooting of a student in the troubled province of Aceh.
Second Brig. Aspardi bin Rusli, 35, is being charged with killing Muhammad Iqbal, a 20-year-old student of Syah Kuala University, in the provincial capital of Banda Aceh on July 18, 2002.
The trial for Aspardi commenced Saturday at the Banda Aceh District Court with judges checking the identity of the defendant and the administrative requirements of his lawyers.
It was the first criminal case to be tried at a civilian court in Aceh involving a suspect from the police force since Law No. 2/2002 came into effect last year.
Previously, police officers accused of crimes went on trial at military tribunals, as the police were part of the Indonesian military apparatus.
Aspardi is charged with violating Article 338 of the Criminal Code, which carries a maximum punishment of 15 years in jail.
The police officer, who has been detained since July 18, 2002, at Aceh Police headquarters, looked healthy when he appeared at the first hearing accompanied by his four lawyers.
Prosecutors Efdal Effendi, Kamaruzzaman and Muhibuddin charged the defendant with the death of Iqbal at 12:30 a.m. on July 18, 2002. Aspardi was not on duty at the time of the incident, they added.
The suspect shot the student dead after his Honda CB 100 motorcycle brushed up against the officer's Honda GL Pro.
Aspardi fell over on his motorcycle from the accident, and Iqbal ran from the scene.
The officer then got up and chased after the student, firing shots into the air to stop the fleeing student. As Iqbal continued to run, Aspardi shot him in the head. The victim died minutes after he was rushed to the hospital.
The trial, presided over by Syafaruddin Nasution, was adjourned until next Saturday for the defense plea from Aspardi's lawyers.
Security forces have been accused of human rights abuses in Aceh and other troubled provinces, such as Papua, since former strongman Soeharto ruled the country repressively for 32 years until 1998.
Some 10,000 people have died in long-standing separatist conflicts between troops and members of the rebel Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which has been fighting for an independent Islamic state in Aceh since 1976.
A peace deal was signed on Dec. 9 between the government and the rebels, but sporadic violence still occurs in the resource- rich province.