Suharto son ignores summons

Tommy led a flamboyant lifestyle during his father's rule

The youngest son of former Indonesian leader President Suharto has failed to surrender himself to the authorities following his conviction in a $10.8m scam.

Tommy Suharto, 37, was sentenced to 18 months last week for corruption in a 1997 property deal. He had been due to be arrested on Monday.

Charges have been dropped against Mr Suharto

But lawyers for Mr Suharto said he had not turned up because he had still not received notification of the Supreme Court's verdict.

The separate $570m corruption trial against his father was dropped last Thursday after judges ruled the 79-year-old former president was physically and mentally unfit to answer the charges.

Summons

Tommy Suharto, who denies any wrongdoing, is the first member of the Suharto family to be convicted of graft during his father's 32-year rule.

The court also ordered him to pay 30.6bn rupiah ($3.5m) in compensation to the state.

Doctors say strokes have left Mr Suharto brain damaged

The verdict, which surprised many, overturned an earlier ruling by a lower court which had acquitted him of corruption in the property deal.

The chief of South Jakarta Prosecution Office, Antasari Ashar, said he had summoned Tommy Suharto to meet prosecutors on Monday.

They were to discuss whether he would appeal against the ruling or admit his guilt and seek a presidential pardon.

No show

However, he sent three lawyers to discuss his plans instead.

One of them, L M M Samosir, said that Mr Suharto would attend a meeting with prosecutors as soon as he received a copy of the Supreme Court conviction.

"We have to study the verdict before we can decide what to do," Mr Samosir said.

Officials at Jakarta's main Cipinang Prison said they had prepared a cell for him.

Bombings

Tommy Suharto has also been implicated in a recent series of explosions in Jakarta, including one at the stock exchange which left 15 dead.

Many suspect supporters of the former president of carrying out the attacks, several of which occurred on the eve of his trial sessions.

President Abdurrahman Wahid has ordered Tommy Suharto's arrest in relation to the bombings.

He has denied any involvement, and police say they do not have enough evidence to arrest him on this charge.

His father's trial was abandoned after an independent panel of doctors found he had been left brain damaged by a series of strokes.

The decision to throw out the charges against the former president triggered violent demonstrations last week.