MUNIR: PROSECUTORS CONTINUE TO PRESSS HARD

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 002408 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT. FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, DRL/PHD DOJ FOR FBI E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/31/2017 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINS KJUS ID SUBJECT: MUNIR: PROSECUTORS CONTINUE TO PRESSS HARD REF: A) JAKARTA 2111 B) JAKARTA 1223 Classified By: Pol/C Joseph Legend Novak, Reasons 1.4 (B,D). ¶1. (C) Summary: In an August 29 hearing, prosecutors in the case of murdered human rights activist Munir presented testimony to refute a key witness who had recanted his statement to police. A forensic expert also confirmed the time that police say the alleged murderer, Pollycarpus, poisoned Munir. These witnesses appear to have strengthened the case for the Supreme Court to retry Pollycarpus. End Summary. Poking Holes in a Recantation -------------- ¶2. (SBU) In an August 29 hearing attended by poloff, the Attorney General's Office cross-examined a key witness in the Munir murder, Ongen Latuihamalo (known as Ongen). In earlier testimony, Ongen had recanted his statement to police that he was with Munir and Pollycarpus in Singapore at the time police allege Pollycarpus poisoned Munir on September 7, 2004 (ref A). During cross examination in Central Jakarta Court, Ongen claimed that police investigator Brig. Gen. Mathius Salempang had pressured him into making his original statement by threatening to make him a suspect in the case. Ongen also said he was forced to remain in police custody for the duration of his questioning and denied that police had held him under voluntary witness protection. ¶3. (SBU) Prosecutors called two police investigators to refute Pollycarpus' recantation. Salempang said Ongen had requested that the police place him in protective custody and that his lawyer, Oshak Sihotang, also presented a written request for protective custody. Ongen decided to testify and had his attorney with him during almost all the interrogation sessions, Salempang asserted. Finally, Salempang testified that Ongen and his attorney both signed Ongen's statement, affirming that it was given voluntarily. ¶4. (SBU) An officer who was present at all of the interrogations, Senior Commander Pambudi Pamungkas, confirmed that Ongen's statement was made without coercion. He also confirmed the presence of an attorney. ¶5. (C) Reviewing Ongen's testimony, human rights lawyer Usman Hamid, who is representing Munir's widow Suciwati in seeking justice, told poloff that police had told him that they originally had strong evidence implicating Ongen in the murder. However, because police had only one other witness who saw Munir with Pollycarpus, police needed Ongen as a witness instead, Hamid surmised. A "Tempo" newspaper reporter covering the trial also told poloff that his police sources told him that Ongen is a suspect and that Ongen was an undercover National Intelligence Agency (BIN) agent. Forensic Expert Testifies -------------- ¶6. (SBU) A forensic toxicologist, I Made Agus Genggeng Wirasuta, also testified at the hearing. According to his analysis of the arsenic toxicology report, Munir's level of arsenic poisoning would have killed him between eight and nine hours after being poisoned. This evidence is key to proving that Munir was poisoned while transiting in Singapore. Still, Wirasuta has no expertise in arsenic poisoning so a more authoritative forensic expert will be needed if the case goes to the Supreme Court. Police could fly in either the Dutch forensic scientist who did the autopsy in Holland or the private American expert who examined Munir's arsenic level at a Seattle lab, Hamid told poloff. Prosecutors get High Marks -------------- ¶7. (C) The next hearing is scheduled for September 12. The defense will have a chance then to counter the prosecution's case. After the defense rests, the court will decide whether to hand the case to the Supreme Court to retry Pollycarpus. At this point, human rights activists are giving the prosecution very high marks. The latest hearing appears to have strengthened the case for a retrial of Pollycarpus. (Note: Pollycarpus was released on December 25, 2007, after the Supreme Court acquitted him of murder charges, having JAKARTA 00002408 002 OF 002 served time for the lesser charge of document falsification.) HUME