Elza now witness in Tommy case

Elza now witness in Tommy case

JAKARTA: Elza Syarief, the lawyer of Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala
Putra, was summoned by police as a witness in an extortion case
involving Tommy, which caused him a total Rp 20 billion in
losses.

"The investigators, thus far, have only questioned me over my
acquaintance with the suspects," Elza told reporters after she
was questioned by police.

The two suspects in the extortion case are Abdullah Sidiq
Muin, the leader of an Islamic boarding school in Kediri, East
Java and Raden Dodi Sumadi, who is known as Tommy's business
colleague.

Elza said that Tommy was asked by both suspects, who served as
former president Abdurrahman Wahid's envoys, to provide the money
in negotiations for a presidential pardon.

Sidiq and Doddy reportedly helped arrange the controversial
meetings between Tommy and then president Abdurrahman at
Borobudur and Regent hotels in 2000. --JP