Prosecutors from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) were scheduled to read out the formal charges against one of Papua’s most popular and controversial figures on Monday, when the long-awaited trial began.

Lukas attended Monday’s indictment hearing by teleconference from the KPK detention center while his lawyers were present in the courtroom, in part because Lukas said he was too sick to travel to the court.

In addition, KPK prosecutors reportedly feared his supporters might swarm the courthouse in support of Lukas, according to various news outlets.

Presiding judge Rianto Adam Pontoh opened Monday’s hearing by asking Lukas if he felt well enough to proceed.

In response, Lukas’ lawyer Petrus Bala Pattyona promptly requested the bench to postpone the indictment hearing so Lukas could have a chance to recover and attend in person.

After a lengthy discussion among the judges, as well as between the KPK prosecutors and Lukas' lawyers, the bench granted the defense's request and rescheduled the indictment hearing to June 19 for Lukas to attend in person.

The bench also asked for Lukas’ assurances that he would be cooperative throughout the rescheduled hearing. The defense agreed, saying the indictment hearing would proceed smoothly without any disruption from members of Lukas’ family or his supporters.

“If there are any disruptions [on June 19], we will return to holding the hearings online” for Lukas to attend remotely, presiding judge Rianto says in a news clip broadcast by Kompas.com.

Read also: KPK chief in spotlight after visit to graft suspect Lukas Enembe in Papua

Defense lawyer O.C. Kaligis said outside the courtroom that Lukas wanted to attend the hearing in person so that the public could see that he was in poor health, reportedly from a number of strokes he had suffered since his arrest in January.

“He wants the public to see that his feet are swollen, that he can't even wear shoes,” Kaligis said on Monday, as quoted by Tempo.co. “He has become more sickly since he was detained.”

Lukas was named as a suspect in September 2022 for allegedly accepting Rp 1 billion (US$67,889) in bribes from Rijatono Lakka in return for awarding government infrastructure projects to Rijatono’s construction company.

Rijatono is currently being tried separately for his part in the scheme.

The KPK arrested Lukas in January after he repeatedly dodged its summonses citing his declining health since he was named as a bribery suspect last September. The antigraft body has denied his legal team’s request to seek overseas medical treatment for Lukas.

His reluctance to heed to the KPK’s summonses led to his arrest, reportedly while he was having lunch in a restaurant in Jayapura.

Lukas’ supporters responded by staging a protest near the National Police Mobile Brigade detention center in Kotaraja, Papua, where Lukas was temporarily held before he was flown to Jakarta from Jayapura’s Sentani airport.

A total of 19 people were arrested following the incident, which was not the first time Lukas’ supporters had taken to the streets. Thousands rallied in September against the KPK’s investigation, demanding that it be halted while accusing the antigraft body of persecuting the governor for political purposes.

Despite the controversies surrounding Lukas, the suspended governor has long been a presence in Papuan politics, known for his adeptness at appeasing his political allies in Jakarta while commanding the respect of many local factions in the restive region.

In May, the KPK named one of his lawyers, Stefanus Roy Rening, as a suspect of obstruction of justice. It alleged that the lawyer hampered its investigation of Lukas by influencing witnesses to make false testimonies and ignore its summonses, as well as working to prevent witnesses from surrendering the alleged graft money to investigators.

In April, the KPK named Lukas as a suspect of money laundering, his second charge after investigators began looking into the crimes the governor was alleged to have committed during his 10 years in office.

A report from the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) also linked Lukas’ bank accounts to a series of suspicious transactions, including payments totaling Rp 560 billion to overseas casinos since 2017.

It is not clear when the KPK will bring the money laundering case to court. (dds)