Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – Police said here Thursday they would summon new witnesses in an effort to shed light on the 2004 murder of prominent human rights activist Munir Said Thalib.

"We are still looking for new testimonies... from the old witnesses and the new ones," National Police chief Gen. Sutanto said after a security meeting at the Coordinating Ministry of Political, Legal and Security Affairs.

He declined name the new witnesses or the date of the summons. "We can't disclose it now. Please, be patient," he said.

The original murder case implicated former top intelligence officers but none of them have been charged.

Earlier in the day Sutanto said the police might again summon Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, the sole suspect in the case and who was released from prison on Monday, for further questioning.

The Supreme Court overturned the murder conviction against Pollycarpus in October, but sentenced him to two years in jail for falsifying flight documents.

"If we have new evidence, anyone involved will be questioned," Sutanto said.

Pollycarpus made his first public appearance Thursday after his release following a three-month sentence reduction granted as part of Christmas celebrations.

He said he fully supported the new investigation into the case and was ready to cooperate with the police. "If they want to reopen the case, please. I will abide by the legal procedures," he said.

Accompanied by his wife Hera Indraswati and lawyer Mohammad Assegaf, Pollycarpus said he denied any wrongdoing. "I was victimized. My case might have been built on mere public opinion or perceptions set by certain people," he said.

He said he believed that Munir was not poisoned aboard the Garuda Indonesia plight from Jakarta to Singapore two years ago. "I'm a pilot. I know that the food on board was sterile for we had conducted a tight security check. It was impossible that the food was contaminated (with poison)."

A Dutch autopsy found a large dose of arsenic in Munir's body and concluded he had been poisoned to death.

Human rights activists, including Munir's widow Suciwati, have accused Pollycarpus of being part of a plot to kill Munir, a staunch critic of the military and the State Intelligence Agency. They also say the pilot attempted to block the investigation by being uncooperative.

Pollycarpus denied being uncooperative with the police. "I was (detained) at the National Police headquarters for 20 months. I answered all the questions posed to me."

He also denied knowing anything about the counterfeited flight documents he allegedly used to get on board the flight with Munir. "All I know is that the documents were legal and I was on board as a professional pilot," he said.

The Solidarity Action Committee for Munir said Pollycarpus may have been involved in killing Munir because he had no clear reason for using such fake documents to get on board the flight to Singapore.