Andra Wisnu, Jakarta – A missing letter connecting the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) to the murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib may reappear as evidence against former BIN officer Muchdi Purwoprandjono.
A.H. Ritonga, deputy attorney general for general crimes, said Tuesday that one of the pieces of evidence in Muchdi's case was the missing letter, first mentioned in the trial of former Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Prijanto, who was sentenced to 20 years for his role in the murder.
Indra Setiawan, a witnesses in the Pollycarpus trial, said he received a classified letter from BIN asking that Pollycarpus be assigned as a security crew member for Munir's flight to Amsterdam. Munir was killed by arsenic poisoning during a stopover at Singapore's Changi Airport in September 2004.
Indra claimed robbers stole the letter from his car, creating a missing link between BIN and Munir's murder. Ritonga said Tuesday police had obtained a soft copy of the letter, though he stopped short of confirming whether it would be presented in court as evidence.
"We just received the case file yesterday... we are still examining the dossier to determine whether we can go to court with the new evidence," Ritonga said.
Last month, police named Muchdi, a retired two-star general who at the time of Munir's death was BIN's deputy chief, a suspect in the murder. During the trial of Pollycarpus, Muchdi was named several times in written testimony from BIN agent Budi Santoso.
Budi testified that Muchdi gave Pollycarpus Rp 10 million (US$1,085) on June 14, 2004, and another Rp 3 to 4 million when the latter was under investigation in connection with the case. Both Muchdi and Pollycarpus have denied knowing each other.
Ritonga said other evidence that had appeared in the Pollycarpus trial could also be used in court, including a record of 41 phone calls between numbers allegedly used by Pollycarpus and Muchdi before and after the murder. He said Muchdi could be charged with premeditated murder, which carries a maximum sentence of death.
Former BIN deputy chief M. As'ad has also been linked to the murder. The missing classified letter from BIN was reportedly signed by As'ad.
Human rights activists and lawmakers have demanded that police also investigate former BIN chief A. M. Hendropriyono for a possible connection to the Munir murder.