Colonel Priyanto was proven guilty of premeditated murder, depriving a person of independence, and removing a corpse with the intention of concealing death.
The panel of judges at the Jakarta High Military Court II sentenced Colonel Priyanto to life in prison in the case of the murder of two teenagers Handi Saputra and Salsabila in Nagreg, West Java.
"The defendant was sentenced to life imprisonment and an additional sentence of dismissal from military service," said Chief Justice Brigadier General of the TNI Faridah Faisal at the High Military Court II Jakarta, East Jakarta, Tuesday, June 7, 2022.
Faridah stated that Colonel Priyanto was proven guilty of premeditated murder, depriving a person of independence, and removing a corpse with the intention of concealing death.
The judge found Priyanto guilty of violating Article 340 of the Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) 1 of the Criminal Code on premeditated murder, Article 333 of the Criminal Code on depriving a person of independence, and Article 181 of the Criminal Code which regulates the crime of hiding the corpse or death of the victim.
The panel of judges gave Colonel Priyanto and his legal counsel the opportunity to think about the decision for seven days.
This case began on December 8, 2021, Colonel Priyanto and two of his subordinates, namely Kopda Andreas and Koptu Ahmad Sholeh, hit Handi and Salsa in Nagreg. However, they did not take the victim to the hospital, but instead dumped Handi and Salsa's bodies in the Serayu River, Central Java.
During the trial, Colonel Priyanto admitted that he had the idea of disposing of the bodies of the two victims because he thought they were both dead because they seemed immobile and not breathing.
However, a number of other witnesses, including civilian Shohibul Iman, who helped lift the bodies of the two victims into Colonel Priyanto's car at the scene of the crime, admitted that they still saw Handi's body moving while groaning in pain.
Then on December 11, 2021, the two bodies of these victims were found by residents. Handi's body was found by residents in the Serayu River in Banyumas, Central Java, while Salsabila's body was found in a river in Cilacap, Central Java. (antara, kompas)
