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Indonesian Supreme Court Nullifies Prison Term for Tommy Soeharto
Indonesian Supreme Court Monday nullified its conviction and 18-month prison sentence of former president Soeharto's fugitive son Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra.
The Supreme Court last September convicted Tommy in a multi- million-U.S.-dollar real estate scam that involved one of his companies and the State Logistics Agency (Bulog).
Supreme Court Chief Justice Bagir Manan said the judicial review had been conducted fairly.
"It was based only on the law and had nothing to do with politics," he was quoted by the Metro TV television as saying.
Tommy, 39, has been in hiding since he was sentenced to 18- month imprisonment for corruption charges last year.
Tommy's lawyer Nudirman Munir hailed the Supreme Court's decision, praising the court for its "fair decision in hard times. "
"This has been the longest year of my life. I thank God for this incredible decision by the Supreme Court. From the very beginning we believed that Tommy was not involved in the scam," Nudirman was quoted by the private television station Indosiar as saying.
Nudirman, however, said that it was not clear whether Tommy would come out of hiding following the Supreme Court's decision.
Tommy has been declared Indonesia's most wanted man and has been accused of masterminding the assassination of the judge who originally found him guilty. Police have also accused Tommy of being behind a spate of bombings in Jakarta.
Tommy had been the only member of the Soeharto family to be found guilty of corruption so far. Soeharto evaded prosecution for graft charges last year claiming he was too ill and frail to face trial.
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