Farouk Arnaz & Nivell Rayda – Antasari Azhar, chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), was detained by Jakarta Police on Monday after being declared the suspected mastermind in a complex murder case that has both shocked and captivated the nation.
Police released some details of their investigation on Monday and the intricate maneuvering that led them to slapping the suspect tag on Antasari on a charge of premeditated murder, an offense that can carry the death penalty.
The widely anticipated arrest came after the KPK chief appeared for questioning at National Police headquarters in South Jakarta as a witness in the March 14 shooting death of Nasrudin Zulkarnaen, director of state-owned PT Putra Rajawali Banjaran, near a golf course in Banten.
"We detained him after we summoned him for questioning for seven hours and found a relationship to this murder. We believe he is the mastermind," said National Policespokesman Insp. Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira on Monday evening. "What the motive is will be revealed in court."
There have been many theories and rumors about the murder, the most prominent being that it stemmed from an alleged love triangle among Antasari, Nasrudin and a female golf caddy, Rani Juliani, at the Modernland course where the victim played golf before he was gunned down by two men on a motorcycle.
Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Wahyono declined to answer when asked by reporters at a packed news conference whether the caddy was having an affair with both men, only saying, "Rani's explanation to us is related to this case and she is now under our protection."
A National Police source familiar with the case said that Antasari was suspected of orchestrating Nasrudin's murder to prevent him from creating a scandal by going public about the KPK chief's alleged affair with Rani. The source said Nasrudin, who had reportedly taken Rani as his third wife, caught her and Antasari together in 2008.
Last week, police detained eight suspects in connection with the murder, some of whom have apparently confessed to playing roles and implicated others. Police released their names on Monday, including two alleged hitmen identified as Heri Santoso and Daniel.
"We started to unravel this case after we arrested suspect H [Heri]. He drove the motorcycle with D [Daniel]. D shot the victim in the head," Wahyono said.
Police nabbed Heri after finding a witness who identified his motorcycle by its license plate number. Police say that after being detained, Heri confessed to shooting Nasrudin together with Daniel on the order of a man named Hendrikus Kia Walen, who has also been detained as a suspect.
Hendrikus said another conspirator, identified as Fransikus, drove a vehicle in front of Nasrudin's BMW to slow him down and give the hitmen an easy target.
According to police, Hendrikus said he received the order to kill Nasrudin from Eduardus Ndopo Mbete, who told police during questioning that he was acting on the orders of Willy Wiliardi, a former South Jakarta Police chief.
Wahyono said police then arrested Sigid Haryo Wibisono, a businessman and former politician, who allegedly funded payments for the conspirators. Based on information from Sigid, Wahyono said, "we then summoned [Antasari]."
In a brief news conference on Sunday, Antasari, flanked by a team of lawyers, said he was ready to defend himself and that the rumors about him were not true.