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Yosua shooter gets lighter sentence after cooperating with investigators: Judges
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T
he panel of judges at South Jakarta District Court sentenced on Wednesday Richard Eliezer, the police officer who shot his colleague Brig. Nofriansyah Yosua Hutabarat on the orders of their commanding officer Ferdy Sambo, to one and a half years in prison, a much lighter sentence than the 12 years sought by prosecutors.
The court found Richard guilty of participating in the premeditated murder of Yosua in July of last year, which was masterminded by Ferdy, the then-police internal affairs chief. Ferdy, a two-star general, made the death of his aide-de-camp look like the result of a shootout between Yosua and his fellow aide-de-camp Richard.
Judges concluded that Richard had agreed to participate in the murder plot hours before he shot and wounded an unarmed and unsuspecting Yosua at Ferdy’s official residence in South Jakarta. Ferdy then finished Yosua off with a bullet to the head.
The reason why Richard got the lesser sentence, despite having himself shot the victim and being involved in the murder plot, was because he eventually agreed to cooperate with authorities by shedding light on the case, Judge Alimin Sujono of the three-member bench said on Wednesday.
“The defendant’s honesty, bravery and determination to convey how events truly unfolded despite the risks, has rendered him worthy of being granted the status of ‘justice collaborator’,” Alimin said. He was referring to a perpetrator of a crime who is willing to work with law enforcement to reveal details of a case and the roles of other culprits.
Read also: Prosecutors seek 12 years for Sambo's bodyguard, 8 for wife
Prior to the shooting, Ferdy had promised to use his position to protect Richard, the bench also found. Richard at the time was an enlisted officer who ranked lower than Yosua.
