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11 years, dismissal for murder
Full house: People watch live CCTV footage on Thursday outside the Yogyakarta military court building where judges were reading out the verdict for Army Special Forces (Kopassus) members tried for allegedly executing three detainees
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Full house: People watch live CCTV footage on Thursday outside the Yogyakarta military court building where judges were reading out the verdict for Army Special Forces (Kopassus) members tried for allegedly executing three detainees. (Antara/Noveradika) (Kopassus) members tried for allegedly executing three detainees. (Antara/Noveradika)
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span class="inline inline-none">Full house: People watch live CCTV footage on Thursday outside the Yogyakarta military court building where judges were reading out the verdict for Army Special Forces (Kopassus) members tried for allegedly executing three detainees. (Antara/Noveradika)
The main perpetrator in the killing of four thugs at Cebongan Penitentiary in Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, got 11-years and was discharged from military service for his role in the premeditated murder.
Second Sgt. Ucok Tigor Simbolon was a member of the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) Group 2 Kandang Menjangan in Surakarta, Central Java.
'The panel of judges considers the sentence fair and humane according to the defendants crime,' presiding judge Lt. Col. Djoko Sasmito said when reading out the verdict at II-11 Yogyakarta Military Court on Thursday.
Ucok was tried together with Second Sgt. Sugeng Sumaryanto and First Cpl. Kodik in the first of four trials in a case that involved a total of 12 Kopassus personnel.
Sugeng was sentenced to eight years in prison while Kodik got six years, both were also dismissed from the military.
They committed the murders on March 23 while the three were involved in an exercise on the slopes of Mount Lawu in Karanganyar, Central Java.
'[Since the beginning of the trial] the panel of judges considered Ucok and his accomplices to have intended to murder Deki,' panel member Maj. Koerniawaty Syarif said.
She was referring to one of the four victims, Hendrik Angel Sahetapy. The three other victims were Yohanes Juan Manbait alias Juan, Gameliel Yermianto Rohi Riwu alias Adi and Andrianus Candra Gajala.
The police detained the four men as suspects due to their implication in the murder of a member of Kopassus Group 2, Chief Sgt. Heru Santosa, at Hugos Café on March 19.
The sentences were lighter than the 12, 10 and eight years, for Ucok, Sugeng and Kodik respectively, demanded by military prosecutors.
Djoko, Koerniawaty and Maj. Tri Ahmad only read the important parts of the 449-page verdict. Otherwise, they would have needed 22 hours and 45 minutes to do so, meaning the trial would not have ended until Friday morning.
Ucok ' speaking on behalf of himself, Sugeng and Kodik ' told the court 'we will appeal' and their supporters erupted into appaluse.
Military prosecutors, led by Lt. Col. Budiharto, said they would consider the verdict.
The panel of judges said the three had beyond reasonable doubt committed premeditated murder as stipulated in Article 340 of the Criminal Code.
'The defendants have been found legally and convincingly to have committed a deed that was against their superior rules as stipulated in Article 103 (1) and (3) of the Military Criminal Code,' Djoko said.
He also said that Ucok 'had the intention of killing Deki and his associates' and was not suffering from serious mental shock because of the murder of his close friend Heru Santoso or the stabbing of First Sgt. Sriyono.
Mitigating factors included the fact the defendants had served the country and the community, admitted their wrongdoings and were not convoluted when testifying. Aggravating factors included the damage they inflicted on the military's image, trauma experienced by penitentiary employees and distress they caused to the victims' families.
Responding to the verdict, Kopassus supporters said they could not accept it and the court had not listened to what the people of Yogyakarta wanted.
Ucok, who was allowed to say something after the verdict, thanked the supporters.
'After serving my sentence I will live in Yogyakarta and fight against these thugs,' he said.
In the second trial, First Sgt. Tri Juwanto, First Sgt. Anjar Rahmanto, First Sgt. Martinus Robert Benani, First Sgt. Suprapto and First Sgt. Hermawan Siswoyo, were sentenced to 21 months behind bars each for assisting premeditated murder.
The panel of judges presided by Lt. Col. Faridah Faisal charged them with violating Article 340 of the Criminal Code by deliberately assisting others that caused death.
The defendants' lawyer Lt. Col. Syarif Hidayat said he would appeal and argued that his clients did not know what happened at the cell A5, referring to the prison cell where the killings were committed.
