Indonesia is known for having some of the harshest narcotics laws in the world, which is why many here are shocked by the not-guilty verdict given to a man who police in South Sulawesi had charged with possession of 3.4 kg of methamphetamines.
While many outraged commenters are accusing the judge of taking a bribe, it looks like he may have actually had sound legal reason to find not guilty after all of the prosecution’s key witnesses changed their testimony.
“We state that the defendant Syamsul Rijal alias Rijal alias Kijang was not proven legally and convincingly guilty of committing a criminal act as charged in the first, second and third indictments,” read the decision on the Makassar District Court’s website, posted yesterday.
If he had been found guilty on the charges, Kijang could’ve been sentenced with up to 20 years in prison or execution.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMSkdLCj68M
In response to the verdict, South Sulawesi Police Narcotics Division head Hermawan told Sulselsatu that the four key witnesses who formed the basis of Kijang’s criminal indictments recanted their statements while testifying in court.
Instead, they all reportedly changed their testimony to say that the methamphetamines were actually owned by a man named Puang Salihin.
According to a court insider interviewed by Rakyatku, the four witnesses had been the ones who were actually arrested with the 3.4 kg of meth. Salihin was also allegedly with them at the time of the arrest but was not charged.
But the four arrested all claimed that it was actually Kijang who was the real owner of the narcotics and all agreed to testify to that in court. Until they recanted, of course, now claiming that it had in fact been Salihin’s all along. They told the court that Salihin had convinced them all to testify against Kijang by promising to pay for all of the living expenses for them and their families, a pledge the four now say Salihin failed to live up to.
In addition, the Pinrang Regional Police investigator who helped led the case was summoned three times to the trial as a witness but never showed up.
Hermawan said police would do an internal investigation into officers suspected of being influenced to affect the verdict.
In addition to being declared innocent, Kijang was immediately freed from detention. Prosecutors have already said they would appeal.
Police had been searching for Kijang (so nicknamed because he’s so allegedly “fast and agile”) since the meth was first seized in 2016. Police say he was caught on May 17 in Nunukan, North Kalimantan, while trying to escape them on a speedboat headed towards the Philippines border.
