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Tommy Suharto Faces Surrender Deadline
By Kazi Mahmood
JAKARTA, Aug 9 (IslamOnline) - Jakarta Police chief Inspector General Sofyan Jacoeb said a three-day deadline for fugitive Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra to surrender to police, which expired Thursday, is still valid and will not be revoked.
The police have also offered a $50,000 reward to anyone who would help capture the fugitive son of former Indonesia strongman General Suharto.
Conversations in coffee shops around Jakarta centered on the ransom money and on Tommy Suharto's change of identity, who has been portrayed in the news as "Ibrahim Hassan" and sporting a beard.
In Indonesia, the flight of Tommy Suharto, a rich young businessman who made millions during his father's rule, is of interest to every single citizen.
Several people said, through letters to local dailies, that they would not hesitate to help authorities catch the elusive Tommy. They added that he should surrender and go to jail for five years, as he was condemned to do so.
Jacoeb said his men were on 24-hour standby ready to pursue leads, including searching locations believed to be hiding places of the country's most wanted man.
Tommy was convicted of graft in a land swap deal that resulted in the state suffering losses of $10.6 million.
Tommy is now also the prime suspect in the July 26th murder of Justice Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, an affair that has further damaged the image of the police, sources said.
Tommy has been at large since Syafiuddin sentenced him to an 18-month jail term late last year.
Two of the four men who gunned down Syafiuddin confessed Tuesday that Tommy hired them.
Sofyan said he believed that Tommy was still in Jakarta, as other sources said the youngest son of the ailing former leader was also behind recent bomb explosions in the country.
A news report on a popular television station in Jakarta said the fugitive businessman has been stating at an army base, adding that the military aided Tommy in his flight, since the military was very close to Suharto.
The report also said that Tommy visited his family, including his elderly and ailing father, under cover of darkness.
It also said Tommy has teamed up with Free Aceh Movement (GAM) members to obtain explosives, and that he has access to military facilities in Jakarta.
The killing of the judge and bomb attacks in Jakarta have prompted Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri to order security forces to step up efforts to capture the fugitive.
Megawati's aide, Bambang Kesowo, told reporters Thursday, "The President has called on the immediate arrest of Tommy because he has been named a suspect."
Jacoeb said the 39-year-old billionaire was a "highly dangerous man who still goes around carrying guns and grenades".
During a Monday night raid on two of Tommy's friends' homes, police found that he was planning to assassinate several top officials and judges, as well as political leaders like House speaker Akbar Tandjung and National Assembly Speaker Amien Rais.
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