Antasari ready to face charges : lawyer

Juniver Girsang, the lawyer of defendant Antasari Azhar, said Tuesday that his client was ready to face indictment by state prosecutors for the murder of former state company director Nasrudin Zulkarnaen.
 
Speaking before the trial, Juniver said a lack of evidence meant prosecutors should clear the defendant of all charges.
 
“My client is should be freed. So far, there are not enough legal facts and testimonies to say he is guilty,” he said at the South Jakarta District Court building.
 
Antasari, former chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), is accused of masterminding the murder of Nasruddin, the former director of state pharmaceutical company PT Putra Rajawali Banjaran.
 
Nasruddin was killed in a drive-by shooting in Tangerang in March.
 
Tangerang District Court has already handed down five lengthy prison sentences for the first verdicts issued in the case, hinting at the possibility of a heavy sentence for Antasari.
 
In their indictment, prosecutors alleged that Antasari wanted Nasruddin killed because Nasruddin had blackmailed the defendant after catching him in an affair with the victim’s wife, Rhani Juliani.