JSX bomb trial commences<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The trial of last year's bombing of the Jakarta
\nStock Exchange (JSX) building, which claimed 10 lives, began on
\nMonday at the South Jakarta District Court.<\/p>\n
While many had suspected that political motives were behind
\nthe bombing, prosecutor Endang Rachwan told the court that Tengku
\nIsmuhadi Jafar, 30, the owner of Krung Baro auto repair shop in
\nCiganjur, South Jakarta, and his employee, Nuryadin alias Nadin,
\n29, bombed the building on Sept. 13, 2000, \"to increase the
\ndollar rate\" against the rupiah.<\/p>\n
Before exploding the bomb, Jafar had bought dollars worth Rp
\n176 million, the prosecutor said.<\/p>\n
At that time, the selling rate for dollars was less than
\n9,000, while today it is almost Rp 11,000.<\/p>\n
The two defendants were accused of violating Article 1
\nparagraph 1 of Emergency Law No. 12\/1951 for possessing and using
\nammunition or explosive material.<\/p>\n
The crime carries a maximum penalty of death and a minimum 20-
\nyear jail term.<\/p>\n
The two defendants allegedly committed the crimes along with
\nIbrahim Amd, who escaped from jail in February; member of the
\nArmy's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) Chief Corp. Ibrahim
\nHasan and member of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) Chief
\nSgt. Irwan, who will be tried separately; as well as Sayed
\nMustofa, Tengku Rayang Rayang and Zulkifli, who are still at
\nlarge, according to the indictment.<\/p>\n
The defendants had appointed a team of 10 lawyers from the
\nIndonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI),
\nincluding Luhut Pangaribuan, who is also President Abdurrahman
\nWahid's lawyer.<\/p>\n
The prosecutor said that the defendants met on Sept. 8, 2000,
\nto make a plan to blow up the JSX building on Jl. Sudirman,
\nCentral Jakarta.<\/p>\n
\"In the meeting, it was discussed that the building would be
\nbombed on Sept. 13, 2000, one day before former president
\nSoeharto was scheduled to stand trial, so that people would
\nsuspect that the bombers were Soeharto's people,\" the prosecutor
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The bomb assembled by Irwan and Ibrahim was made of 49 TNT
\nbars and was put into the trunk of a Toyota Mark II, the
\nprosecutor said.<\/p>\n
On the designated day, at about 1 p.m. Irwan drove the car to
\nthe JSX building and called Jafar that he was on the way. Jafar
\nand Ibrahim, who had expected their call, immediately went to BNI
\n46 bank in Pasar Minggu to withdraw cash amounting to Rp 175
\nmillion, and then exchanged it into dollars at the Bank Central
\nAsia in Cilandak.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile Irwan parked the car at the basement of JSX, set the
\ntimer, and then left for Plaza Senayan, where Jafar and Ibrahim
\nwere waiting.<\/p>\n
The bomb exploded at 3:20 p.m., killing 10 people, injuring 46
\nothers, damaging 179 cars, and destroying parts of the building.<\/p>\n
The incident was among a series of bombings which shocked the
\ncountry last year, including the explosions at the Malaysian and
\nPhilippine embassies in Jakarta, and the Christmas bombings in
\nthe capital and several other towns. All incidents remain a
\nmystery.<\/p>\n
In the JSX building bombing, the police once connected the
\ncase with the separatist Free Aceh Movement as most suspects were
\nAcehnese.<\/p>\n
Prosecutor Rachwan, however, mentioned nothing about the
\nseparatist movement.<\/p>\n
Defendant Nuryadin said after the trial, presided over by
\njudge Rusmandani Ahmad that the whole thing was construed by
\ninvestigators.<\/p>\n
The trial will resume next Monday.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the second session on Monday, in which Ibrahim and
\nIrwan were supposed to be tried, was adjourned for a week as
\nIrwan and the suspects' lawyers did not show up.<\/p>\n
According to prosecutor Soejitno, Irwan refused to attend the
\ntrial because the situation in Cipinang Penitentiary has not been
\nnormal since last month's riot.<\/p>\n
\"We just found out about his refusal, so we were unable to
\nanticipate it,\" he said, adding that they will force Irwan to
\nattend the trial next week if he still refuses.<\/p>\n
Irwan's lawyer, Jonson Panjaitan, said he had not received the
\nsummons.(hdn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jsx-bomb-trial-commences-1447893297",
"image": ""
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