Radhiyya Indra, Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) prosecutors have read the indictment against four officers for allegedly launching a premeditated acid attack against human rights activist Andrie Yunus in the first hearing of the case in the Jakarta Military Court.
In a live streamed public hearing on Wednesday at the Jakarta Military Court in East Jakarta, prosecutors formally read out charges against the defendants, namely Capt. Nandala Dwi Prasetyo, First Lt. Budhi Hariyanto Widhi, First Lt. Sami Lakka and Second Lt. Edi Sudarko.
All defendants were assigned to the TNI's Strategic Intelligence Agency (BAIS).
Military prosecutor Capt. Hanggono said the defendants' alleged involvement in the assault met elements of multiple criminal offenses under the Criminal Code (KUHP), primarily Article 469 on premeditated serious assault which carries a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison.
Other charges include Article 468 of KUHP for causing serious injury that carries a maximum punishment of eight years behind bars.
According to the indictment, the defendants' carried out a premeditated against Andrie, deputy coordinator of human rights group Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), after seeing viral videos of him interrupting closed-door deliberations by members of the House of Representatives (DPR) on revisions to the TNI Law in March 2025 at Fairmont Hotel in Central Jakarta.
"Based on this incident, the defendants considered Andrie had insulted and even trampled on the dignity of the military institution," prosecutor Lt. Col Muhammad Iswadi read out the indictment at Wednesday's hearing.
In March 2026, a year after the Fairmont incident, prosecutors suspected the defendants brought up Andrie during their off-duty talks, leading to them planning the assault.
One of the defendants allegedly procured "used battery water" and rust cleaning spray from BAIS' car repair shop. They later mixed both liquids inside a drinking bottle.
The defendants allegedly started tracking Andrie's movements around the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) office in Central Jakarta on March 12, the day of the incident, which resulted in the assault against the activist close to midnight.
Andrie remains under intensive care since the incident, with burns covering around 20 percent of his body.
All four defendants have been detained by investigators of the Military Police Headquarters (Puspom TNI) since March 18, with their detention extended pending the next hearing on May 6.
Rights groups have previously called for a public trial. A civil group coalition also launched an independent probe into the incident and found a more organized attack involving over a dozen of perpetrators beyond the four military officers.
Source: https://asianews.network/military-court-indicts-officers-in-activist-acid-attack-case-in-indonesia