Owner of passport used by Nazaruddin arrested

The North Sumatra Police on Tuesday arrested Muhammad Syarifuddin, the holder of a passport allegedly used by fugitive graft suspect Muhammad Nazaruddin to flee overseas.

North Sumatra Police criminal investigations director Sr. Comr. Agus Andrianto said Syarifuddin was arrested at his new house in Medan, Antara news agency reported.

Agus did not disclose Syarifuddin's new address or the time he was arrested, but said the arrest was made following a request from the National Police.

Nazaruddin, the former treasurer of the Democratic Party, was named a suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) for his alleged role in a graft case surrounding a Southeast Asian (SEA) Games construction project in Palembang, South Sumatra.

Nazaruddin fled to Singapore in May and later traveled to Vietnam, Cambodia, Spain and then to the Dominican Republic before going to Colombia on July 24.

The hunt for Nazaruddin has drawn public attention after he accused top Democratic Party officials of complicity in the graft case.