Two journalists face prosecution for trespassing
JAKARTA (JP): Two journalists of the Sinar news magazine are facing prosecution for allegedly sneaking into the home of a daughter of former president Sukarno in search of evidence that she was having a love affair with a senior police officer.
Police detectives said yesterday that they had "strong" evidence that the journalists, Victoria I.G. Sidjabat and photographer Yul Adriansyah, had illegally entered the residence of Rachmawati Soekarnoputri in Cilandak, South Jakarta.
"They got into her front yard without permission," a senior police officer who is handling the case told the Jakarta Post by telephone yesterday.
The journalists said they were assigned by their editors to observe Rachmawati's house on Wednesday after her estranged husband Dicky Suprapto tipped off the magazine that she was there with Lt. Col. Benny Soemarno. The 46-year-old officer is personal secretary to the city police chief.
Rachmawati, 44, and Dicky, 54, have filed for a divorce with the local religious court, each accusing the other of having an affair.
The source said that the dossiers of the two journalists would be completed very soon and would be referred to court for prosecution unless Rachmawati agreed an out-of-court settlement.
The reporters face a maximum term of imprisonment of nine months or maximum fine of Rp 4,500 (US$2) if they are found guilty.
Sinar Deputy Chief Editor Wikrama I. Abidin told the Post yesterday: "We're ready to face the trial. We have nothing to worry about."
He said he strongly believed that his journalists were innocent, saying that they had violated no rules because they entered the residence with permission from Dicky.
Police said earlier on Thursday that the two journalists climbed the fence of Rachmawati's residence and took several pictures of two cars parked on the lawn.
Sinar Chief Editor Sjam Alamsjah, who has lodged a protest with the city police chief, said in a statement released here on Thursday that the journalists entered the house after a housemaid opened the front gate for them.
He said the journalists arrived at the house at about 9 p.m. on Wednesday to interview Rachmawati and prove that she and Benny lived together in the house, as claimed by Dicky. They were assigned the story after Dicky who came to the magazine office and said that Rachmawati and Benny would be at the house that evening, Alamsjah said.
They went to the house together with Dicky, he added.
After getting inside the house, Yul took several pictures of the two cars and the house while Victoria went to knock on the front door before a servant appeared and told them that Rachmawati did not want to be disturbed, Sjam said.
On their way out of the house, the journalists were startled when suddenly Rachmawati came out of the house with a gun, demanding that they leave the premises, Alamsjah said.
He said that they rushed to Dicky's car and left the scene immediately. To make sure that Benny was at the house, the two journalists went back to the house alone.
Rachmawati then asked them to accompany her to the police station, but the two refused until a policeman from the nearby Cilandak sub-precinct came and one of their editors gave them permission to go with the officer, Alamsjah said. (bsr)