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Mediocre prosecution sees ex-spy walk free
Former top spy Maj
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F
ormer top spy Maj. Gen. (ret) Muchdi Purwopranjono walked free on Wednesday after a court found him not guilty of masterminding the 2004 murder of noted human rights activist Munir Said Thalib.
In response, assistant attorney general for general crimes Abdul Hakim Ritonga promptly said prosecutors would appeal the much-decried verdict.
The prosecution, which had sought a 15-year prison sentence for the former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) deputy chief, has 14 days in which to file an appeal, he added.
The South Jakarta District Court acquitted Muchdi of all charges of soliciting and premeditating the murder, and ordered prosecutors to release him from detention immediately.
"The defendant has not been proven legally and convincingly to have ordered and planned the murder," presiding judge Suharto told the packed courtroom.
"The court will thus restore the defendant's rights in relation to his dignity and moral status."
The ruling was greeted by hundreds of Muchdi's supporters chanting the national anthem, while hundreds of Munir's supporters shouted in anger at Muchdi. A scuffle almost broke out, which police managed to defuse by dispersing the crowd.
The prosecution failed to prove Muchdi had recruited former Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto to kill Munir, the panel of judges ruled.
Munir was found dead from arsenic poisoning on board a flight from Jakarta to Amsterdam on Sept. 7, 2004. Pollycarpus was later sentenced to 20 years in prison for the murder.
"Despite the evidence of call data records (CDR) that show calls made between the defendant's and Pollycarpus' phone numbers from Sept. 1 to Sept. 30, 2004, there is no other data to prove it was really the defendant who made the calls," judge Haswandi said.
The judges added prosecutors also failed to clarify the defendant's motive for murdering Munir.
Prosecutors alleged Muchdi killed Munir out of revenge for the latter's role in leading an investigation into the abductions of 13 activists by special army forces under the command of Muchdi in 1997 and 1998. Muchdi was discharged from his prestigious post following the probe.
"The prosecution only based this motive on the testimony of Munir's wife, Suciwati, but was unable to demonstrate the defendant's sense of revenge," Haswandi argued.
