Tommy's bodyguards get jail for fake documents<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The South Jakarta District Court handed down verdicts on two
\nformer bodyguards of Hutomo \"Tommy\" Mandala Putra on Thursday
\nwithout hearing the testimony of Tommy, who apparently told the
\ndefendants to forge the documents.<\/p>\n
Presiding judge Soedarto declared defendants Dedi Sutaedi
\nYusuf and Ferry Hukom guilty of making illegal documents to be
\nused while Tommy was a fugitive.<\/p>\n
Dedi was sentenced to 16 months in jail, while Ferry received
\n14 months.<\/p>\n
The court was originally scheduled to announce its verdict on
\nWednesday, but it was delayed because Judge Soedarto's house was
\nflooded.<\/p>\n
According to the verdict, in May last year Dedi received a
\nphone call from then fugitive Tommy, who requested a passport to
\nbe used during an emergency. Dedi then asked a newspaper man to
\nforge the documents needed to obtain a passport. He paid Rp
\n500,000 and gave the man two photographs of Tommy sporting a
\nbeard and moustache. On the back of the photos, the name
\n\"Ibrahim\" was written.<\/p>\n
Tommy was on the run to avoid the 18-month jail term imposed
\non him for corruption.<\/p>\n
Even though the two defendants forged the documents upon
\nTommy's order, the court did not summon Tommy to testify despite
\nthe request of Dedi's lawyer, M. Sawir Achmad.<\/p>\n
Soedarto said that it was not relevant for the court to
\npresent Tommy because the defendants had admitted guilt. He said
\nit was also \"risky\" to present Tommy, who the police are
\ninvestigating in connection to other cases.<\/p>\n
Topo Susanto, a legal expert from the University of Indonesia,
\nsaid that Tommy should appear at the court not as a witness, but
\nas a defendant. She said that police investigators should
\nimmediately investigate him for forgery.<\/p>\n
Tommy has been questioned in connection to the murder of
\nJustice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, who sentenced him to 18
\nmonths in jail, and illegal possession of firearms.<\/p>\n
State prosecutors had earlier asked the South Jakarta District
\nCourt to sentence Dedi and Ferry each to two years in prison.<\/p>\n
Dedi, 34, received a heavier a sentence because he persuaded
\nothers to commit a crime while Ferry, 39, was found guilty of
\nsigning one of the fake documents.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/tommys-bodyguards-get-jail-for-fake-documents-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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