Three men claiming to have been tortured until they confessed to stealing a motorcycle last year are challenging the charges they have been slapped with by the Jakarta Police.

The men--Herianto, 21, Aris, 33, and Bihin, 39--were arrested last month and have been named suspects for stealing a motorcycle in June last year. A pretrial motion hearing took place at the South Jakarta District Court on Monday.   

Bunga Siagian from the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), who represents them in the case, said the suspects were not in Jakarta, but in their hometown of Palembang, South Sumatra, when the theft occurred,  

“They were beaten, electrocuted and spit on [by investigators] prior to confessing to the accusation,” Bunga said during a press briefing at LBH Jakarta in Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Sunday.

Lastri, 29, Herianto’s sister, who was also present in the briefing, showed pictures of her brother’s injuries. She added that family members were notified about the arrests a week after they were detained. (wit)