KUALA LUMPUR (AP): Four Malaysian policemen have been suspended for allegedly assaulting an Indonesian karate referee, in a case that has sparked outrage in Jakarta, officials said Wednesday.
Authorities are investigating allegations by Donald Pieter Luther Kolopita that the four plain-clothes policemen arrested him, handcuffed him and beat him up last Friday in the southern state of Negeri Sembilan, said state police chief Mohamad Noh Kandah.
Mohamad Noh said investigations were continuing and the four police officers have been suspended from duty pending the outcome.
"I will make sure that justice is done," he said.
Indonesian embassy officials said Kolopita was severely injured by the beatings. He initially thought the four men were robbers when they approached him and fought back when they tried to detain him, the embassy officials said.
"He was very shocked. Of course, he is a karate coach, so he fought back," Tatang Razak of the Embassy said. "What happened was unbelievable. (Kolopita) was tortured by the police."
Shanti Utami Retnaningsih, an official with the Indonesian embassy in Malaysia, said Kolopita was flown back to Jakarta over the weekend and hospitalized with broken ribs and swelling on his face and genitals.
The Indonesian karate team has boycotted the competition in protest at his beating, she said.
"It's very, very bad," she said. "I think he is still unable to walk, and he cannot see normally."
The embassy has sent a protest note to Malaysia's foreign ministry, demanding swift action against the culprits, she said. (**)
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