Sjahril accuses Marzuki over wrongful detention
Sjahril accuses Marzuki over wrongful detention
JAKARTA (JP): Lawyers for Bank Indonesia governor Sjahril
Sabirin accused on Tuesday Attorney General Marzuki Darusman of
wrongfully detaining their client over his alleged role in the Rp
546 billion Bank Bali corruption scandal.
Defense lawyer Muhammad Assegaf told the South Jakarta
District Court the detention of his client since June 21 was
unwarranted.
"The entire time Pak Sjahril has been in detention, he has
only been questioned twice. Where is the reason to detain him?"
Assegaf asked the hearing, presided over by Judge Ahmad
Rusmandani.
Marzuki, who was not present at court, has said he followed
all existing legal procedures and that Sjahril was detained as a
suspect to facilitate a fair and proper investigation.
His lawyer, Harry Hartono, said at the hearing that the
attorney general was empowered by law to detain any suspect for
investigation.
Sjahril was declared a suspect in the Bank Bali scandal and
has been detained at the Attorney General's Office since his June
arrest. His detention has since been extended twice.
His lawyers -- Assegaf, Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara and
Sulistiyo -- have claimed the Attorney General's Office is not
entitled to extend their client's detention.
They said earlier the office's decision to name Sjahril a
suspect in the Bank Bali scam "had no legal basis at all".
"It's the responsibility of a district court, not the
prosecutors, to decide on an extension. We ask the court to annul
Sjahril's arrest status and the extension of the arrest period,"
the lawyers said.
Rusmandani decided to adjourn the hearing until Wednesday.
The Bank Bali scandal started when three private banks -- Bank
BDNI, Bank Tiara and Bank Umum Nasional -- failed to repay Rp 904
billion debt to Bank Bali, a debt which remained outstanding
until the three banks were closed down by the central bank in
late 1998 due to poor financial records.
Bank Bali then asked the government for a loan disbursement as
it had been put under a restructuring program.
After the signing of a controversial January 1999 cessie
contract between the bank and private firm PT EGP, Bank Bali paid
Rp 546 billion to PT EGP as commission to help recoup the funds.
Many people believe the money was largely used by the then
ruling Golkar party to bankroll the then president B.J. Habibie's
campaign for election.
A prosecutor recently demanded a one-and-a-half-year jail term
for Djoko S. Tjandra, the primary defendant in the scandal.
The verdict in Djoko's case will be declared on Monday. (ylt)