Prosecution witnesses testifying against detained leader Aung San Suu Kyi have given differing testimonies about where they found allegedly illegal communications devices during a raid on her home as the February 1 coup unfolded.
Suu Kyi was accused after her arrest, among several other things, of possessing illegally imported walkie talkies. She was charged under the Export and Import Law and the Telecommunications Law and faces up to a four-year prison sentence for the offence.
But a lawyer who was present at the court in Naypyitaw during a hearing for the case on Monday said one of the junta security officials who testified contradicted claims made by the others who took the stand the same day.
Five people testified on behalf of the prosecution at Monday’s hearing–a military major, two captains, a sergeant and a police major.
Four said the walkie-talkies were found inside Suu Kyi’s Naypyitaw home, but the fifth said they were confiscated from her security team at the gate leading into the residential compound, the lawyer said.
The lawyer did not disclose which of the five officials gave the differing testimony, but the claim that the devices were seized from the security team aligns with what was written in documents submitted to the court after her arrest.
At a hearing in July, Major Win Htut Oo, who led the raid on Suu Kyi’s residence, testified that no security personnel were present at the time.
“It’s good that they gave different testimonies,” the lawyer said. “It’s not even a crime if you find communications devices on the security team of a leader of the state. The judge will need to make the right decision in this case.”
Also on Monday, Suu Kyi testified on her own behalf in a separate case in which she is accused of breaching Covid-19 regulations during last year’s election campaign period.
She faces a sentence of up to a three years in prison under Section 25 of the Natural Disaster Management Law for the alleged offence, but her defence team did not call any witnesses for fear that they would be persecuted by the junta.
“She rebutted with a short statement that she only waved at the crowd and that it was all done according to the Covid-19 restrictions,” said the lawyer.
The military council has filed a total of 11 cases against Suu Kyi that could add up to a decades-long sentence.
Her five-member defence team has been banned from speaking to the media about her hearings, which are being held in secret at a specially prepared court in the capital.
