Witness Karno testified Thursday that he had a tape of a conversation between former KPK chief Antasari Azhar and businessman Sigid Haryo Wibisono, on their ploy to murder PT Putra Rajawali Banjaran former director, Nasruddin Zulkarnaen.
In the following hearing session of Antasari's trial Thursday, detik.com reported that Karno, Sigit's servant, said he had been ordered by Setyo Wahyudi, Sigid's assistant, to activate a tape recorder hidden in Sigid's study, where the meeting took place in January.
Karno said there were two tape recorders that day, one under a table and one beside a television set.
"I **turned on the recorder* near the television."
Karno said he was asked to turn on the recorder ten minutes before Antasari arrived.
Antasari is accused of murdering Nasruddin, director of PT Putra Rajawali Banjaran, a state-owned pharmaceutical company.
The businessman was killed in March in a drive-by shooting and the case was said to have stemmed from a love triangle between the two men and ex-golf caddy Rani Juliani.
Media tycoon Sigid and former South Jakarta Police Chief Wiliardi Wizard are also on trial for the murder, with Wiliardi accused of hiring the hitmen and Sigid of paying them.
Wiliardi previously testified that he was pushed by high-ranking police officials to produce a false dossier that cast Antasari in a guilty light.
The Thursday session also heard the testimonies of two of Antasari's former sidekicks, Fajar Asih Kuncoro and Imam Syafei.
Both Fajar and Imam testified that they had accompanied the defendant to meet Sigid in the latter's residence in Pati Unus, South Jakarta.
They also said they had seen Nasruddin coming to the KPK office several times with no visible changes in his emotional state after the visits, kompas.com reported.
According to the news wire, Fajar and Imam both shook Antasari's hand after testifying. Fajar even kissed the defendant's hand.
Juniver Girsang, Antasari's lawyer, said the session hinted that the case was a plot to frame his client.
"This trial proved that their relationship *Antasari and Nasaruddin* was on very good terms... There weren't any problems."
Juniver said the mention of a recorded conversation between Antasari and Sigid had surprised the former and his legal team.
"We don't know what's on the recording. It has never been played for our client to hear. It should have been played during the questioning."
He said Antasari and his team were not intimidated by the recording. "However, Pak Antasari said he and Sigid often joked around."
The Criminal Code does not usually count recordings as valid evidence, but it could be if it was played during a trial session of a corruption case, Juniver said.
The presiding panel of judges said that the team of prosecutors may bring experts as witnesses "when the time comes" and "after there are no more fact witnesses". (dis)
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