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Police no longer consider Iwik a murder suspect
The Yogyakarta Police say they respect the decision of the Bantul District Court to acquit Dwi Sumadji, alias Iwik, of the murder of journalist Fuad Muhammad Syafruddin, alias Udin, 18 years ago
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he Yogyakarta Police say they respect the decision of the Bantul District Court to acquit Dwi Sumadji, alias Iwik, of the murder of journalist Fuad Muhammad Syafruddin, alias Udin, 18 years ago.
'We will obey the legal process. What the judge ruled must be followed by the investigators,' Yogyakarta Police chief Brig. Gen. Oerip Soebagyo said on Thursday.
He was speaking during a discussion with representatives of the Yogyakarta branch of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Yogyakarta, the Press Legal Aid Institute (LBH Pers) Yogyakarta and the People's Coalition for Udin (K@MU) at his office.
The statement was considered a new turn because up until last month under the leadership of Brig. Gen. Haka Astana, the Yogyakarta Police still considered Iwik a suspect in the murder case.
Iwik was under suspicion due to his apparent affair with Udin's wife, but in 1997 the Bantul District Court acquitted him due to a lack of evidence.
Earlier this year, the Sleman District Court ruled in favor of Iwik, who sued the Yogyakarta Police for continuing to treat him as a suspect in the case.
Udin was beaten by unidentified individuals at his home in Bantul on Aug. 13, 1996. He did not regain consciousness and died three days later at the Bethesda Hospital, Yogyakarta.
'Our commitment is clear. We cannot stop [the investigation] and the investigators have not issued a warrant to terminate the investigation [SP3],' Oerip said.
He said the Yogyakarta Police would continue investigating the case. Based on the Criminal Code, a case may be closed if the police fail to find the perpetrators 18 years after the crime.
Oerip said the police, however, had not found any new evidence leading to a new suspect.
The head of the General Crimes Directorate, Sr. Comr. Kartoyo, said the police would strive to solve the murder case no matter who was involved.
He also called on the public to help the police bring the case to a satisfactory conclusion.
'It would be an achievement for me if Udin's murder case was solved,' Kartoyo said.
K@MU coordinator Tri Wahyu KH welcomed the police's move and asked them to be transparent in the case for the sake of justice and legal protection for all.
'This is a new step by the Yogyakarta Police,' Wahyu said.
Wahyu also urged the police to look into indications that the then regent of Bantul did not like Udin's critical reports on the regency administration.
