Tommy shuns again Tangerang court

Tommy shuns again Tangerang court

TANGERANG: State prosecutors failed to present former
president Soeharto's youngest son Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra to
testify in the Tangerang District Court on Wednesday as he has
been transferred to the Nusakambangan penal island near Cilacap,
Central Java.

Tommy was scheduled to testify in the trial of some of his
alleged accomplices, former senior Army officer's widow Rossana
Hasan, 55, her son Bill Haq, 25, and former model Regina Ursula
Sandi, 37, who were accused of harboring Tommy during his time on
the run.

Prosecutor Puji Rahajo finally read out the statements Tommy
made to the police.

According to these, Tommy got to know Sandi after businessman
Setiawan Djodi, Sandi's then husband, introduced Tommy to her in
1993. Tommy's first meeting with defendants Rossana and her son
was at a party in 1994.

Tommy went on the run in November 2000 after the Supreme Court
sentenced him to 18 months in jail for graft.

Last month, the Central Jakarta District Court gave him 15
years in jail for masterminding the murder of Syafiuddin
Kartasasmita, one of the judges who convicted him.--JP