Six years sought for Tommy's accomplice

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Prosecutors demanded on Thursday that the South Jakarta District Court find an accomplice of Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra guilty for his role in the premeditated murder of Supreme Court justice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita last July.

But chief prosecutor Ismanto only recommended the court sentence the defendant, Dody Hardjito, 40, to six years in jail for violating Article 340 of the Criminal Code on premeditated murder and article 56 paragraph 2 of the same Criminal Code on assisting the crime. The first article carries a maximum penalty of death and the second one 15 years in jail.

Dody, Ismanto said, is also guilty of violating Article 221 of the Criminal Code on aiding a fugitive, which carries a maximum penalty of nine months in jail. The prosecutor has charged Dody with helping Tommy, the youngest son of former president Soeharto, during the nearly one year the latter spent on the run from the law.

"Evidence shows the defendant was involved in planning the murder of Syafiuddin, who sentenced Tommy to 18 months in jail (for corruption in September 2000)," Ismanto told the South Jakarta District Court.

Dody appeared to be nervous and kept his eyes fixed on the floor during the hearing on Thursday, which was presided over by Judge Tusani Djafri. But he looked a bit relieved after hearing the prosecutor's sentencing recommendation.

Following the hearing, Ismanto was forced to field questions from journalists about the sentencing recommendation, which was considered light for the seriousness of the crime Dody is charged with.

"This (recommendation) was made by me on behalf of my supervisors. That's all I can say," he told journalists, refusing to comment further.

Defense lawyer Erman Umar said the sentencing recommendation showed that prosecutors were not confident about the case against his client.

The unexpected recommendation is only one in a number of odd and questionable moves and decisions in Dody's trial. Ismanto failed to present the sentencing recommendation on Monday on the grounds that he had not yet finished it.

He also failed to present Tommy as a witness during the trial, although the court summoned him three times.

The first time Tommy failed to appear, Ismanto said it was because of security concerns. There was no explanation for the second absence, and Tommy claimed a toothache was responsible for his third absence.

The court considered Tommy's testimony vital in proving Dody's guilt, but the police were unable to include Tommy's testimony in the Dody's dossier because he was still a fugitive when the dossier was completed.

According to prosecutors, Dody rented a house on Jl. Alam Segar III in Pondok Indah, South Jakarta, on Tommy's order because the then fugitive required a place to hide.

Dody and another Tommy associate, Dedi Sutaedi Yusuf, allegedly cased out Syafiuddin's home on Jl. Mandor Hasan in Cipayung, East Jakarta, on June 2001.

And prosecutors say that Tommy ordered Dody to drive him on a motorbike to the home because he wanted to shoot Syafiuddin himself. But Dody refused and suggested Tommy hire someone to kill the Supreme Court justice.

To this end, Dody allegedly contacted R. Maulawarman, alias Molla, an employee of the Diva Bar in Taman Ria, Senayan to carry out the killing. The bar is owned by Dody's brother.

Prosecutors say that Molla, along with Noval Hadad, shot Syafiuddin to death on July 26 last year while the judge was on the way to his office. The two men are currently on trial at the Central Jakarta District Court for their alleged roles in the murder of Syafiuddin.