Testimony of Body Discovery Completes Elements of Proof in Bank Branch Head Case

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The statement of the 17th witness, Adi Lestari (46), who discovered the unidentified male corpse in Bekasi, forms a crucial part in completing the elements of proof in the alleged kidnapping and murder case against a bank branch head (kacab) in Jakarta, initialled MIP (37). Although the witness did not attend the trial, the panel of judges still accepted the reading of the statement previously given during the investigation phase. The Military Prosecutor from the Military Audit Office II-07 Jakarta, Major (Chk) Wasinton Marpaung, stated that the 17th witness had been properly summoned but did not appear without confirmation. Therefore, the prosecution requested that her statement be read out in court. According to Wasinton, the witness’s role was primarily in discovering the victim at the crime scene, so her statement was deemed sufficient to complement the series of facts presented by previous witnesses. “For proving the elements, we believe it is already sufficient, because this witness only found the victim at the scene,” Wasinton said during the witness and defendant examination hearing in the bank branch head case at the Military Court II-08 Jakarta, Cakung, East Jakarta, on Tuesday. The Presiding Judge, Colonel Chk Fredy Ferdian Isnartanto, then approved the reading of the witness’s examination minutes (BAP) as part of the trial process. At the time, she was walking while leading a cow to the pasture. During the journey, she saw a figure lying on the ground in a prone position, about 60 metres from the main road. Because there were no signs of movement or sound, she suspected something was amiss. However, the witness did not directly confirm the victim’s condition and immediately reported her finding to the local Binmaspol officers. In her testimony, Adi also claimed not to recognise the victim and not to know his identity. The limited observation meant the witness could not describe the victim’s physical features in detail. In fact, Adi initially thought the corpse was female. Nevertheless, she still remembered some of the clothing worn by the victim, namely grey shoes with brown combination, brown trousers, and a brown batik shirt. With the inclusion of this statement in the trial, the chain of facts compiled by the prosecution is considered increasingly complete in outlining the events that occurred. Previously, a bank auxiliary branch head (kacab) in Jakarta, initialled MIP, was allegedly kidnapped and murdered at a shopping centre in Ciracas, East Jakarta, on 20 August 2025. The corpse was found in Kampung Karangsambung, RT 8/RW 4, Nagasari Village, Serang Baru Subdistrict, Bekasi Regency, West Java, around 05:30 WIB, on 21 August 2025. A resident in the rice field area first discovered the corpse with hands and feet bound, and eyes covered with duct tape. The corpse was immediately taken to Kramat Jati Police Hospital for autopsy as part of the investigation.