T

he public has had mixed responses to the incident in which a graft defendant, prosecutor Sistoyo, was allegedly attacked by Deddy Sugarda with a paper-wrapped machete after his trial at the Bandung Corruption Court on Wednesday.

“The lesson learned is that corruption is so frightening — you could be attacked over some money,” Sandra Arifin, a school teacher in Bandung, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

However, Bandung student Mario Lubis said that the attack was against the law and could not be justified. “I don’t know what the real situation was, but to attack someone using a machete is not acceptable,” he said.

Qudsiyah Endah, a banker living in Jakarta, said that Deddy’s stunt represented how most people feel about the handling of corruption cases in the country. “Corruption trials look like meaningless TV shows. They are there only to fulfill people’s wants. In the end, those corruptors only get light sentences, so what’s the point of it?” she said.

Sistoyo, who got eight stitches in his forehead due to the attack, was caught red-handed by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) accepting Rp 100 million (US$10,890) in bribes from a defendant named Edward last November.

In Bandung, KPK prosecutor Hadiyanto believes other actors were behind the attack. “I believe it was not possible for him to work alone,” Hardiyanto said Thursday.

The allegation was strengthened after Hadiyanto watched the CCTV recording of the incident, which took place in front of the Kresna courtroom. According to him, 10 minutes before Deddy launched the attack, he was approached by three of his colleagues. “Someone handed him a machete and poster,” he said.

Hadiyanto added that the incident had impeded Sistoyo’s court presence as a witness in the trial involving defendant Edward M. Bunjamin, believed to have bribed Sistoyo almost Rp 100 million.

“The incident would hamper court proceedings. He is active in two trials because he is also a key witness in Edward’s trial. He knows the whole story. There are probably efforts to impede Sistoyo’s trial, but it is the concern of investigators,” said Hadiyanto.

After the incident, the Bandung Corruption Court tightened security. Scores of police personnel were seen lining the stairs leading to the Kresna courtroom, usually used to hear graft cases. Police had also installed a metal detector at the entrance of the courtroom.