Former Indonesian police inspector-general Ferdy Sambo at his trial in Jakarta on Monday. - Reuters
JAKARTA, Feb 13 (Bloomberg): A murder case involving the top ranks of Indonesia’s police has resulted in the court handing a death sentence to a formerly high-ranking police officer.
The South Jakarta court ruled Ferdy Sambo, the former police chief of internal affairs, guilty of the planned murder of junior police officer Nofriansyah Yosua Hutabarat, Judge Wahyu Iman Santoso said on Monday.
The judge also found Sambo guilty of obstruction of justice.
Ferdy’s sentence was heavier than the life imprisonment sought by prosecutors.
In sentencing, presiding Judge Wahyu Iman Santoso said aggravating factors included the fact that he had killed his own subordinate who had worked for him for three years, and that the death had caused deep sorrow to the victim’s family.
“The defendant’s action had triggered widespread unrest and commotion in the community. It is also inappropriate for his position as a law enforcement officer,” Judge Wahyu said.
“The defendant’s actions had also tarnished the institution of the National Police in the eyes of the Indonesian community and the international community. The defendant was also convoluted in giving information and did not admit to his crime.”
A courtroom packed with journalists broke into cheers when the verdict was read, but Ferdy appeared emotionless. It is unclear if he would appeal the sentence.
The sentencing marks the conclusion of a seven-month long scandal that has gripped the nation’s attention, with local news channels broadcasting the trial nearly everyday.
The scandal is widely seen as a major setback for the national police force that has been trying to regain public trust following long-standing complaints of corruption and brutality.
The police were also heavily criticized for firing tear gas to break up a riot at a football match that triggered a deadly stampede that killed 125 people dead and left hundreds injured.
Rosti Simanjuntak (centre), mother of late Brigadier Nofriansyah Yosua Hutabarat, holds a picture of her son after former head of the internal affairs for Indonesia's national police Ferdy Sambo was sentenced to death during a verdict hearing at the South Jakarta court in Jakarta on February 13, 2023. - Sambo was sentenced to death on Monday over the murder of his bodyguard Hutabarat in a high-profile trial seen as a test of the accountability of the country's police force. - AFP
- The Murder -
The murder plot, detailed in a 97-page indictment and witnesses’ testimonies, read like a crime novel.
It all started on July 7, 2022, a day before the murder, when Ferdy’s wife Putri Chandrawathi, 49, telephoned him to complain that Nofriansyah had tried to sexually harass her during a trip to Magelang, Central Java. She repeated her claim when they returned to Jakarta the next afternoon.
Furious, Ferdy summoned another subordinate, junior police officer Richard Eliezer Pudihang Lumliu, 24, and asked if he “had the guts to shoot” Nofriansyah. Richard expressed his readiness.
Ferdy told Richard that Nofriansyah had insulted him and that he “must die”, Judge Wahyu told the court.
“The defendant (Ferdy) said that if Richard were to kill, Ferdy would be able to protect him. But if Ferdy were to kill instead, he wouldn’t be able to protect everyone,” the judge said.
Ferdy said the shooting would be seen as an act of self-defence and him providing protection to Putri.
That evening, at Ferdy’s residence in South Jakarta, Richard fired his Glock-17 three or four times at an unarmed Nofriansyah until he collapsed. Holding a gun in his gloved hand, Ferdy then fatally shot the wounded man with a bullet to the back of his head.
The two-star general then staged the scene to make it look like a shoot-out between his two subordinates. He shot at a wall near Nofriansyah several times. He then placed the dead man’s gun back in his hand and manipulated it to fire at the opposite wall.
But his scheme was exposed, after footage showing police ordering Nofriansyah’s family not to open his coffin when it was delivered to their home went viral on social media. Discrepancies soon emerged between official police statements and accounts by Nofriansyah’s family, who suspected foul play after seeing bruises and cuts on his body, in addition to bullet wounds.
Holding a framed photograph of Nofriansyah in court, his mother Rosita Simanjuntak burst into tears when the verdict was read. She told reporters after the trial: “God has gifted us a miracle in court today... God is good and mighty.”
She added: “From now on, I hope there won’t be any more cases of people, police officers, being used by their superiors to commit crimes.”
Amid public pressure, President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, called for a thorough investigation into the incident.
Indonesian National Police chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo formed a special investigative team, who found that the police officers investigating the case earlier had acted “unprofessionally” at the crime scene and that there were some attempts to destroy and tamper with evidence.
Kamarudin Simanjuntak, Nofriansyah’s lawyer, said of the verdict: “The decision of the panel of judges is a victory for all Indonesians. The people have got justice.”
Court hearings revealed that Ferdy was a very influential and respected figure whose orders were seldom disobeyed. He had also prepared rewards for his subordinates in the form of cash and iPhone 13 Pro Max phones for their roles in the murder.
Besides Ferdy, his wife, two police officers and a family assistant are expected to be sentenced this week.
The saga came on the back of a series of cases of police misconduct, eroding public trust in the institution.
Former West Sumatra Police chief Teddy Minahasa was detained in October 2022 on suspicion of distributing drugs. Meanwhile, a number of police officers are standing trial on charges of criminal negligence for indiscriminate use of tear gas at a football match in October 2022 which triggered a stampede, killing 135 fans.
Indonesians have urged for reform and better governance in the police force, which enjoyed wide-ranging powers after it was hived off from the Suharto-era military in 1999 and placed directly under the authority of the president in 2002. The police were able to draft policies and budgets, in addition to carrying out day-to-day security management and law enforcement.
Critics noted that the National Police Commission (Kompolnas), an independent civilian oversight institution which supervises the police, could only advise the police chief but lacked the authority to issue sanctions.
