Tommy's hitmen to get only 14 years for assassination
Tommy's hitmen to get only 14 years for assassination
Muninggar Sri Saraswati
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Prosecutors demanded on Friday a 14-year sentence each for the
two accomplices of Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra in the
assassination of Supreme Court Justice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita
last July allegedly ordered and funded by Tommy.
Chief prosecutor Abdul Kamar Badrun presented the sentence
recommendation for R. Maulawarman, alias Molla, and Noval Hadad
at the Central Jakarta District Court.
Molla, 35, and Noval, 26, according to Abdul, are guilty of
violating Article 340 of the Criminal Code on premeditated murder
and Emergency Law No 12/1951 on illegal possession of firearms
and ammunition. Both articles carry a maximum penalty of death.
"Evidence and witnesses reveal that the defendants had
committed premeditated murder," Abdul said.
The defendants appeared calm upon hearing the sentence demand.
According to prosecutors, Tommy told his other accomplice,
Dody Hardjito, that he wanted to kill Syafiuddin with his own
hands. Tommy asked Dody to drive a motorcycle while Tommy, in the
passenger seat, would shoot Syafiuddin. As Dody was afraid to
carry out such a risky maneuver, Tommy then asked him to find a
hitman.
Dody introduced Molla to Tommy in July 2001, according to the
prosecutors.
In the middle of July, Molla met Tommy and asked the
billionaire to pay Rp 200 million with a down payment of Rp 30
million to assassinate the judge who sentenced him. On the same
day, Tommy paid him US$20,000. Molla then recruited Noval, who
claimed that he had once killed a man in his hometown in
Pontianak, West Kalimantan. Noval agreed to do the shooting as
Molla promised him Rp 50 million for the job, the prosecutors
said.
On July 26, at about 7:30 a.m., Syafiuddin was shot to death
in the Sunter Jaya area of North Jakarta, on his way to work. The
murder was committed by Mola and Noval, who rode the motorcycle.
It was Noval who shot Syafiuddin, according to prosecutors.
After the murder, Molla reported the result to Tommy and gave
Rp 50 million to Noval.
Tommy, the youngest son of former president Soeharto, is
currently being tried in the same court. He faces four charges:
the illegal possession of firearms and ammunition at Soeharto
family-owned Cemara Apartment in Central Jakarta and in Pondok
Indah, South Jakarta; the premeditated murder of Syafiuddin as
well as fleeing from justice.
He could face the death penalty, if convicted.
On Thursday, prosecutors asked the South Jakarta District
Court to sentence Dody to six years in jail.
Prosecutor Abdul told reporters after Friday's hearing that
the sentence recommendation was made by his institution.
"We consider the sentence equal to the crime the defendants
did," he said when reporters questioned why the prosecutors did
not ask for a maximum sentence regarding the seriousness of the
crime the defendants did.
Syafiuddin was one of the judges who sentenced Tommy to 18
months jail term for graft in September 2000.
Tommy had asked for a presidential pardon. But President
Abdurrahman Wahid rejected the request, and Tommy went
underground. After more than one year in hiding, Tommy was
arrested by the police in November last year.