“When the masterminds manipulate their pawns, there will always be people who end up dead … or lose their minds.”
~ Rouzel Soeb ~
Supreme Court Building, Medan Merdeka Utara, Jakarta, February 22, 2016 (Second Hearing of Warih’s Case), 10.00 AM
“Please, calm down, visitors, please calm down! If you can’t compose yourselves, this hearing will continue behind closed doors, excluding the public.”
The third judge, Autar Sidabuke, roamed around the courtroom, notably more crowded than during the first hearing. Given the heightened public interest in Warih’s case and the media coverage following the initial proceedings, a substantial crowd had gathered to witness the review process.
As a result, not only has the courtroom been extremely crowded since it was convened two hours ago, but the proceedings have frequently been disrupted by the over-the-top reactions of some visitors.
“Has everyone settled down?” Judge Autar asked, lifting his gaze towards the visitors once again “If everyone is calmer now, let’s continue this hearing. The prosecutor may proceed with their earlier question.”
Prosecutor Yudi nodded. He then unfolded the document on his desk, reading its contents before returning his gaze to Warih.
“Of all the matters discussed in the previous hearing, there is one pivotal and indisputable piece of evidence… a factor that essentially resulted in Mr. Warih’s arrest by the police on May 21, 1998. This incontrovertible evidence is associated with the findings from the initial autopsy conducted on May 17, which subsequently prompted the police to designate Mr. Warih as a suspect.”
“Among the 17 bruises or contusions on the victim’s body,” he continued, “there was one particularly distinct mark on the victim’s left thigh area, as identified by the forensics. Subsequent analysis confirmed it to be a grip mark, likely inflicted on the same day as the victim’s death.”
“The forensic team at that time encountered challenges in identifying this mark due to the influence of the victim, who was discovered in a wet condition and had undergone accelerated decomposition. However, after adjusting the handprint to the size of an adult human hand and considering possible alterations due to water contamination, they ultimately established that the handprint matched the size of Mr. Warih’s hand. He is the petitioner in this judicial review.”
“This assertion is further substantiated by the outcomes of the second autopsy, which were disregarded in the first trial. Even during the second autopsy, the examiner concurred. The person who tightly gripped the victim’s thigh on the day of her death… was highly likely to be Mr. Warih himself.”
“This indeed posed a significant question for the police at that time. How was it possible for the petitioner, who claimed to be unwell and had been asleep throughout the day, to leave traces of such a forceful hand grip on the victim’s inner thigh? How could this occurrence be explained without the presence of violence in the proximity of the victim’s intimate areas… an act allegedly committed by Mr. Warih against his own daughter on the day of her death?”
“This information was later affirmed by a witness who was with the victim when she departed from her residence. According to the witness, on May 13, the victim appeared as if she wanted to escape from home and wept inconsolably. The victim even brought along a collection of coins from her savings with the intention to leave Mr. Warih’s house.”
“These two pieces of information remained unanswered by Mr. Warih during the police investigation and the initial trial. It was these unresolved aspects that ultimately led to Mr. Warih being charged and sentenced. My question now is directed straight to the petitioner, Mr. Warih himself. Mr. Warih, can you provide an answer to this question now?”
Warih, who was sitting in his wheelchair, now raised his head towards Prosecutor Yudi.
“I can’t,” he replied slowly, a statement that sent shockwaves through the courtroom. “I still can’t explain why my hand was on my daughter’s inner thigh that day… and why she wanted to run away from my house.”
Sambora Police Station, May 22, 1998, 4:00 PM
“Sir, Warih is not a bad person, Sir!” exclaimed Babe Rusdi at the Sambora Police Station, his tone filled with fiery emotion. “Oh my God, Sir! He’s still grieving over the death of his daughter, and now… he must endure this ordeal? Can’t you see how it’s driving him to the edge?”
Enyak Juri, also present, wept bitterly upon seeing Warih, now adorned with bruises all over his body after just one day in police custody. Unchanged from the day he learned about the results of his daughter’s second autopsy, the man remained silent and stunned, resembling someone on the verge of losing his sanity.
He persisted in gazing at the same spot in front of him with a vacant stare, seemingly oblivious to the people surrounding him. Despite numerous attempts to engage him, Warih remained silent, appearing as if he heard nothing at all.
“Just yesterday, Mala was dug up from her damp grave, and now suddenly Warih is arrested. He cried and fainted multiple times upon hearing the autopsy results. How can such a person be accused of assaulting his own child, sir?! He couldn’t have harmed his own daughter. That man genuinely loved his daughter. Why did you do this to him? Oh God… oh God!”
Enyak Juri once again screamed hysterically. Tears streaming down her face as she pounded her chest.
“Where is the compassion in people these days? A father is shattered by the tragic loss of his daughter, and yet they still accuse him of cruelty. Warih couldn’t harm a fly, let alone his daughter, Mala. Oh God, what a dreadful fate for both father and daughter, oh God!”
Gabe Purba and Alip, also present, refrained from protesting to the police. Their gaze remained fixed on Warih, who appeared to remain silent, bearing numerous bruises from his detention as a suspect.
“Rih,” Gabe said with tears in his eyes, “I’m sorry I wasn’t here yesterday to help you find Mala. It breaks my heart to see the fate of you and her. Togi can’t bear to come here after hearing what happened to you and Mala. He’s been crying for days. It’s difficult for me to see you like this and hear about your daughter.”
“Rih, be patient,” Alip chimed in with eyes that were already wet. “God never sleeps. Gabe and I will keep trying to find ways to help you. Don’t pay attention to the people around your house who are now starting to doubt you. We, as your friends, know who you really are.”
Gabe cast a glance at Alip, signaling him to refrain from discussing certain neighbors of Warih – individuals who were altering their opinions about Mala’s father. The presence of the bruise on Mala’s thigh and the circulating rumor that she attempted to flee from Warih’s house on the night of May 13 had prompted some individuals in the vicinity of Warih’s residence to accuse him of being the perpetrator.
This was because they did not hear the results of the second autopsy and only learned from the police conversation during yesterday’s sudden arrest of Warih. While they believed Warih to be a good person, the existence of some past incidents between Warih and his daughter has started to instill doubt in their minds.
“What are you doing here?!”
The sound of Enyak Juri’s screams suddenly reverberated throughout the police station. Turning around, both Gabe and Alip saw that Enyak Juri had stood up from her chair, glaring at a gaunt-faced woman with very thin eyebrows who had just emerged from a certain room inside the police station.
“Why are you upset that I’m here?!” the gaunt-faced woman retorted to Enyak Juri.
“It was your mouth that led to Warih getting arrested here! What kind of problem do you have with Warih?! What’s wrong with you?! If you’re looking for someone to blame, it’s your son Fadli, not Warih, whom you’re accusing of hurting Mala!”
The middle-aged woman, who turned out to be Fadli’s mother, now glared back at Enyak Juri.
“If you don’t know anything about the law, don’t make careless accusations! The police these days aren’t stupid! They work according to procedure! They wouldn’t have arrested Warih if there wasn’t any evidence pointing to him! It’s true that Warih beat up Mala in the past! The whole neighborhood also knows that he used to use marijuana!”
“It has nothing to do with his past!” screamed Enyak Juri again. “Warih became a suspect because of your words that brought his past to the police!”
“Ma’am, sorry,” interrupted a policeman there with an offended expression. “What we did was not just based on the gossip around Mr. Warih’s neighborhood. We made Mr. Warih a suspect because there are new findings that lead to that, and they are quite strong. We have also confirmed this matter with Mr. Warih himself, but he continues to refuse to answer.”
Enyak Juri clutched her chest in frustration. “Not refusing, sir! He’s in shock that his daughter died like that! How can he answer your questions if he can’t even respond to our words as the people closest to him now! He’s stressed, sir! He can’t defend himself!”
“If he can’t answer, then don’t blame us if he is now arrested!” said Fadli’s mother in an angry tone. “You ask Warih why he was silent about his daughter who wanted to run away that night! You ask him why he made Mala’s inner thighs like that?”
“If it wasn’t my son telling me about Mala, who was crying and limping when she ran away from Warih,” she continued, “people wouldn’t have known Warih’s true nature! You ask Warih why he can’t answer all the questions from the cops here! If you can’t make him answer the police, don’t blame the police and me! Do you understand?!”
Kampung Kubur Koja, 11:00 PM
A man strolled through the chilly night with his head bowed under the hood of a black hoodie. Both hands were tucked into the pockets of his hoodie, seeking warmth in the cold.
At times, he cast glances to his left and right before resuming his steps. However, most of the time, he briskly walked with his head frequently turning back, as if he were afraid that something or someone might suddenly catch up or pursue him.
The man was on the verge of reaching the small building he had in his sights, now half-running to get inside and casting one last look behind him. However, the moment he turned his face forward, something suddenly struck him so hard from the front that it sent him sprawling to the ground.
Bam!
“You’re Fadli, aren’t you?” questioned a voice from the shadows in a hissing tone. “How much longer do you plan to hide, huh?”
The man, who turned out to be Fadli, immediately turned his body from the asphalt to look at the person who hit him. As soon as he saw the person, his eyes widened with fear.
“You know who I am, right?”
Fadli nodded slowly. “B-bang Gabe and *Kang Alip ….”
Bam!
Another punch landed on Fadli’s face, delivered by Gabe, who now hovered menacingly over him. Terrified, Fadli scrambled to escape from under Gabe. However, Gabe’s hand grasped him, preventing his escape. Togi’s father then seized him by the collar of his hoodie once more, preparing to deliver another forceful blow to his face.
Bam!
“How long do you think you can run away from us? You’re running away because you’re guilty, right?”
Alip then crouched next to Fadli and delivered a strong slap to the back of the young man’s head.
“Do you realize that Warih became a suspect because of you? Your parents accused him of various things, and now Warih, who lost Mala so tragically because of your actions, is being tormented at the police station to confess to something he didn’t do! Do you understand that he can’t even defend himself now, and he’s starting to appear mentally disturbed because of the loss of his child?”
Bam!
With a visibly rising rage, Gabe then struck the young man’s face repeatedly, until Alip had to reluctantly pull his friend away from Fadli, who was now beginning to crumple.
“We need him alive, Brother,” Alip whispered, trying to calm down the enraged Gabe. He knew exactly the maximum limits Gabe could exceed when he was angry.
“I don’t care about this idiot!” Gabe cursed with a flushed face. “What kind of person has no heart for someone’s daughter to the point of being this terrible?! You’re like a demon! You’re a damn disgrace!”
“Brother… hold on for a moment,” Alip whispered again. He started to worry about Gabe’s anger, which had exceeded their initial plan. “If it continues like this, you could end up in jail too, Bro. Let me be the one to talk to him for now.”
“Dli…,” Alip said, now squatting over Fadli, “just confess, will you? You’re the one who did those horrible things to little Mala, right? You’re the one who took Mala out, aren’t you? Everyone already knows about this; you’re the one who caused Mala’s death, right?!”
“Not… not me, Kang,” Fadli mumbled with a trembling voice.
The young man’s eyes now appeared squinted due to swelling, and blood seemed to clot at the corner of his mouth. When he paused to cough, the blood clot at the corner of his mouth dripped along with his saliva onto his chin.
“I re–really didn’t do anything to Mala, Kang,” Fadli replied again, his body still trembling. “I s–swear, I didn’t do that to Mala at all!”
“Still want to lie to me, huh?!” said Alip with a raised tone. “How much more do you want to make Warih suffer?!”
Gabe was growing increasingly impatient. “Enough! Let me be the one to teach this jerk a lesson! Let me finish him off! He did that to Mala, and now his mother is telling the police to arrest Warih. They’re like animals, this whole family!”
“NOT ME, I SWEAR TO GOD, BANG! It was not me!” Fadli suddenly screamed hysterically and fearfully. “I’ve been on the run not because I’m the perpetrator. I did take Mala out and joked with her, but I’m not the one who did that to Mala, Bang! I swear to God! I’ve been on the run because I was shocked when I received the news that Mala was missing that night … and now she’s dead.”
Fadli suddenly cried with half of his face pressed against the asphalt. ‘I swear, Bang, it wasn’t me. I swear… I also don’t know what happened to her.'”
“It wasn’t me or my mom who made the police arrest Kang Warih,” continued Fadli with a more strained voice. “I did inform my mom that Mala ran away and cried that night, but I didn’t say anything more. The police went to Kang Warih on their own. I was surprised myself. My mom got angry at Kang Warih because I told her I wasn’t the one who did it. I swear, I don’t know what really happened to Mala.”
“To be honest, I did take Mala out and teased her with my motorcycle. It was just a joke, but Mala started screaming for help. Not long after, she threw herself off my motorcycle and suddenly ran away.”
“I was shocked to see Mala jump, Bang. I wanted to chase her, but suddenly… there was Mala’s acquaintance helping her. They got on another motorcycle and immediately fled towards Jembatan Tiga. That’s all I know. I honestly told this to Bang Gabe and Kang Alip. I SWEAR THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED!”
Gabe and Alip now fell silent and exchanging glances.
“Mala’s acquaintance? What do you mean?”
Fadli shook his head quickly. “I don’t know much, Kang. It seems like he’s not from our neighborhood, but he called Mala by name, and Mala immediately got on his motorcycle.”
“Do you remember his face?” Alip asked with a furrowed brow.
Fadli shook his head again. “I don’t, Kang, he wore a helmet. But one thing I remember at that time. Mala called that person before getting on the motorcycle.”
“Mala called him?”
This time, Fadli nodded while wiping his tears. “Yes, Kang. I remember because I was about to stop Mala at that time. I thought it was someone Mala didn’t know, but… Mala called him ‘Mr. Suwasto’.”
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
“Kang” is a colloquial term used in Indonesia, particularly in Sundanese culture, to address an older male figure or a respected male authority figure, similar to “brother” or “mister” in English.
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