A legal defense fundraiser has been launched online for Tommy Schaefer, the 21-year-old Oak Park-River Forest High School graduate being held by police in Bali as a murder suspect.

The campaign on fundraising website YouCaring.com had raised $4,681 from 48 supporters by Wednesday afternoon. The “Fundraiser Details” portion of the website notes that the campaign was launched by Schaefer’s mother, Kia Walker, a Forest Park resident. It aims to raise $100,000.

Titled “My Son, Tommy Schaefer Deserves a Fair Trial,” the fundraising website notes that Schaefer, 21, “is potentially facing execution by firing squad in Indonesia.”

“Tommy desperately needs to raise money to pay for a lawyer in Indonesia. I love and care deeply for my son,” the website states.

Walker could not immediately be reached for comment.

Schaefer has been held by police in Bali since Aug. 13, and is suspected in the murder of former Oak Park resident Sheila von Weise Mack, the mother of Schaefer’s girlfriend Heather Mack.

Heather Mack also is being held as a suspect. The three were vacationing in Bali when the murder took place. Von Weise Mack’s body was discovered in a suitcase outside the hotel where the three were staying. Heather Mack’s Chicago-based attorney, Michael Elkins, maintains his client’s innocence.

The comments section of the fundraiser website had mixed reactions, some referring to Schaefer and Mack as “murderers” and “entitled brats” and others calling for justice and a fair trial.

The website is at: http://www.youcaring.com/other/my-son-tommy-schaefer-deserves-a-fair-trial/222682

Contact:
Email: tim@oakpark.com