Rahmat – A 17-year-old boy at the center of a legal and public relations storm was found guilty on Wednesday of stealing a pair of sandals from a policeman and released into the custody of his parents. He had faced up to five years in prison.

Elvis D.J. Kantuwu, the lawyer for the boy, A.A.L., said the district court in Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi, found that his client "was proved to have engaged in theft and it was decided to return him to his parents."

The lawyer said the boy's parents would file an appeal. Despite the verdict, Elvis continued to protest the innocence of his client, saying there was a lack of evidence of his involvement in the theft in May.

"There are three requirements that could not be met to find A.A.L. guilty of violating Article 362 of the Criminal Code," he said.

First, he said, the police officer who reported A.A.L,, First. Brig. Ahmad Rusdi, told the court that he was uncertain about his accusation, and that it was more a matter of intuition than proof.

In addition, he said, A.A.L.'s friends told the court that the sandals found with A.A.L. were Eiger brand. The police officer said his sandals were Andos.

Elvis also said the police couldn't prove that A.A.L. had taken the sandals, which had been lying in the street some 30 meters from the policeman's rented room.

He also pointed to discrepancies in the verdict about who exactly the sandals in question belonged to. In its legal consideration, the panel of judges said it remained unknown who owned the evidence, and therefore the sandals would be destroyed.

"Looking at all of this, the verdict was inconsistent and contradictory," Elvis said.

The decision by Rusdi to file a police complaint against A.A.L. over a petty theft triggered a wave of public indignation and protest. On Wednesday, scores of protesters rallied outside the Palu courtroom demanding the young defendant's release.

The protesters carried posters criticizing Rusdi and the police. They also had a straw man dressed as a police officer, which they set fire to in front of the courthouse. Protesters also handed over dozens of sandals to the deputy speaker of the Central Sulawesi legislative council, Hendri Kawulur, who was at the court.

"I will accept these sandals as a form of protest against law enforcement in our region," he said before the trial began.

Across the country, people donated sandals as part of a campaign organized by the National Commission on Child Protection (KPAI) to shame the police over the trial. The commission has said it plans to hand over the sandals to the National Police later this week.

Elvis also denied a statement by the National Police that his client had previously stolen six other pairs sandals. The lawyer also disputed a police denial that his client had been beaten up by the plaintiff and one of his colleagues, John Simson.

He said that in court, the defendant had said that Rusdi and Simson had beaten up A.A.L. and two of his friends. "It is really clear that the defendant was mistreated by the plaintiff," Elvis said. Rusdi still faces a disciplinary tribunal.