Udin murder case brought to court despite doubts

YOGYAKARTA (JP): The police have kept their word about sending a driver to court on charges of killing a journalist in August, despite public doubt about whether they captured the right culprit.

Prosecutors said yesterday they received dossiers on the suspect, Dwi Sumaji, from the police Wednesday.

They declined to comment on the results of the police investigation, saying they would need several days to examine it and decide if the evidence is sufficient to try the suspect.

"The Criminal Code gives us a week to examine an incoming law suit," said Yogyakarta High Prosecutors Office chief Asrief Adam.

Police arrested Sumaji, a driver for a travel agent, on Oct. 21 on the suspicion of murdering Fuad Muhammad Syafrudin, or Udin, a Yogyakarta Bernas daily reporter.

Udin died on Aug. 16, three days after he was attacked by a group of unknown people at his home in Bantul, near Yogyakarta.

Investigations by the Indonesian Journalists Association and the National Commission on Human Rights have concluded Udin was murdered because of his critical reporting on corruption at the Bantul regency administration.

But police insist the killer was Sumaji who, they theorize, was enraged because the reporter had had an affair with his wife.

Sumaji's lawyer, Djufri Taufik of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute, said sending his client to court was a "careless" move.

"We don't want to see the suspect sent to court. The police evidence is weak," said Djufri.

In a related development the National Commission on Human Rights in Jakarta said it was too early for police to take the case to court.

After meeting with National Police Chief Lt. Gen. Dibyo Widodo, commission member Bambang W. Soeharto said the investigation into the affair was not finished.

Bambang said that before submitting dossiers to prosecutors, police should listen to public input, such as the investigation results from the commission and the journalists association.

"Everybody, including the police can do wrong," Bambang said.

The commission has said police violated the suspect's basic rights when they arrested him.

Udin's lawyers have claimed Sumaji was drugged and taken to a hotel in Parangtritis beach resort, south of Yogyakarta, before the police extracted a confession from him.

During the 90-minute meeting with the police chief, Bambang and other commission members advised the authorities to listen to what the public have to say. (23/bsr/pan)