A court sentenced a senior member of an organized crime syndicate to nine years in prison in March after accepting as evidence a DVD recording of a prosecutor's interrogation of a witness in the drug-smuggling case, sources close to the matter revealed Thursday.
It is rare for a court to accept a DVD of an interrogation of a witness, rather than a defendant, as evidence in a criminal case. DVDs are usually used merely to determine whether a suspect's confession under questioning by law enforcement authorities was made voluntarily.
Although prosecutors are eager to use DVD recordings of witnesses in court, some defense lawyers oppose it, claiming that "showing vivid recordings of such interrogations could give a false impression."