Jakarta Police to Summon Tommy Suharto

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:The Jakarta Police plan to summon Hutomo Mandala Putra, popularly called Tommy Suharto, in regards to the statement that he made during the trial at the Central Jakarta State Court on Wednesday (28/6). Tommy, who allegedly masterminded the murder of the late supreme justice Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, will be summoned along with other people who witnessed Tommy’s statement during the recent trial and acknowledge his whereabouts in his house in Jalan Cendana in Jakarta. Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Makbul Padmanegara made this statement to reporters following a Friday prayer session that was held at the Jakarta Police headquarters on Friday(28/6). As reported earlier, Tommy told the judges in the recent trial that he had been hiding in his houses in Jalan Cendana, in TMII, in Bintaro’s Jalan Maleo street and in the Kalitan area of Surakarta, Central Java, during his run. According to him, he had made some arrangements with security forces to prevent his arrest. According to Makbul, if certain groups or people are proven of having protected Tommy, they could be considered of having violated the regulation regarding harboring a fugitive. “Even if that person is a Jakarta Police chief like me, he will face sanctions,” said Makbul. He went on to say that he realized that only the judges could decide on whether or not such things, as indicated in Tommy’s statement, are crimes. The police will cooperate with the judges and prosecutor in proving the statement of Tommy. According to Makbul, he has established a team to investigate the matter dealing with Tommy’s statement. However, he declined to reveal the time of the summons and questioning of Tommy.(Bagja Hidayat-Tempo News Room)