Court sentences bomb owner to 10 years in jail

JAKARTA (JP): East Jakarta District Court sentenced Elize Maria Tuwahatu to 10 years in jail on Monday for the illegal possession of bombs, which she once claimed to have received from former president Soeharto's fugitive son Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putera.

Presiding Judge Suhartono said in the verdict that Elize, 33, was found guilty of owning explosives without a permit from the concerned authorities.

The defendant was guilty of violating the 1951 Emergency Law on the illegal possession of explosives.

"The crime committed by Elize provoked public unrest," said the judge.

The sentence was five years lighter than the 15-year term demanded by public prosecutor Surung Aritonang.

Police arrested Elize on Jan. 19 when she was caught red- handed carrying three bombs at the Indonesian Miniature Park (TMII) recreation park.

Elize initially claimed she received the bombs from Tommy, who asked her to plant them in several places such as the Attorney General's Office and the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The woman, who lives on Jl. Suwiryo in Menteng, just a few hundred meters from the houses of former president Soeharto and Tommy respectively, also said she had received Rp 75 million in checks from Tommy.

Elize, however, later retracted her statement, saying she was given the bombs by a man who looked like Tommy. Before her arrest she reportedly used to describe herself, a Christian, as the spiritual advisor of Tommy, who is a Muslim.

"We are still considering whether to accept or to appeal to a higher court," her defense lawyer Masiga Bugis responded, when asked by the judge about his client's reaction to the punishment.

Tommy has been at large since November when he escaped after South Jakarta District Court sentenced him to an 18-month jail term for corruption in a land exchange deal with the State Logistics Agency (Bulog).

There is speculation that last Friday's killing of Supreme Court Justice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, who sentenced Tommy to jail for graft, was also linked with Tommy, an allegation flatly denied by his lawyers.

Lawyer Elza Syarif told Antara on Tuesday that media reports on the murder could be disadvantageous for his client, Tommy, whose case is being studied by the Supreme Court.

He was referring to Tommy's request to the court to review a land scam that had brought him to trial.

Soon after the decision was made, Tommy escaped. Strangely enough, while he was on the run, his lawyer filed a request with the Supreme Court to review the case, a move that has sparked controversy among legal experts. (prb)