Marriott bomber Sardona gets 10 years in prison<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A panel of judges at Bengkulu district court sentenced on
\nThursday defendant Sardona Siliwangi, 23, to 10 years in jail for
\nhis role in the Marriott bombing last year.<\/p>\n
In his verdict, presiding judge Aljaman Sutopo said that
\nSardona was proven guilty of accepting and storing explosives to
\nperpetrate an act of terrorism, which was a violation of the Law
\non Terrorism 2003. The verdict was five years less than that
\ndemanded by the prosecutor.<\/p>\n
The judge said that the defendant was known to have stored the
\nexplosives in Bengkulu for three months in his house, before they
\nwere taken by Asmar Latin Sani to Jakarta for the bombing. Asmar,
\nthe executor of the Marriott bombing, died in the incident, which
\ntook the lives of at least 14 people.<\/p>\n
In the trial, the judge also rejected an argument by the
\ndefendant's lawyer that Sardona had no idea what was inside six
\ncartons entrusted to him in Bengkulu by Asmar, a few months
\nbefore the bombing in August.<\/p>\n
The defendant must have known that the cartons contained
\nexplosive materials, the judge asserted.<\/p>\n
The judge said that the defendant had seen black powder when
\nDr. Azhari and Noordin Mohd. Top opened the boxes, and the
\ndefendant should have been suspicious of that.<\/p>\n
Azhari and Noordin, the main suspects in the bombing, are
\nstill at large.<\/p>\n
Warnings by Asmar and Noordin that Sardona should keep the
\ncartons well away from heat sources should also have raised his
\nsuspicions.<\/p>\n
\"Based on our findings, we concluded that the defendant
\nSardona should have known that the boxes contained explosive
\nmaterials,\" the judge said, as quoted by Antara news agency.<\/p>\n
The JW Marriott blast was the first major bombing to have hit
\nthe country after bombs ripped through Sari Club and Paddy's bar
\nin the packed tourist resort of Kuta, Bali, in October 2002,
\nkilling 202 people, mostly foreign tourists, and injuring 300
\nothers.<\/p>\n
Separately, Medan district court opened a trial on bombings
\nfour years ago on three churches in Medan, the capital of North
\nSumatra. The first hearing on Thursday presented defendant
\nAwaluddin Sitorus.<\/p>\n
In his indictment, prosecutor Usman said that the bombing
\nbegan when the defendant was called by Hambali, a regional terror
\nsuspect, in 1999.<\/p>\n
Hambali told defendant Awaluddin that his two friends, Faiz
\nAbu Bakar Bafana and Nasrullah, would meet the latter in a
\nrestaurant in Tanjung Balai regency, North Sumatra. In the
\nmeeting, Faiz, who is now in detention in Malaysia, asked the
\ndefendant to mobilize Afghanistan and Moro alumni to perpetrate
\nchurch bombings in Medan. The defendant OK'd the request, and he
\nand Nasrullah then met Toni Togar in Medan to prepare for the
\nbombing.<\/p>\n
Imam Samudra, the main perpetrator in the Bali bombing and
\nalready sentenced to death, once met with these people in Medan.<\/p>\n
On May 28, 2000, Imam ordered Awaluddin to place a bomb in the
\nHKBP church on Jl. Sudirman, Toni to place a bomb in the GKPI
\nchurch on Jl. Padang Bulan and Nasrullah to place a bomb in
\nKristus Raja church on Jl. M.T. Haryono.<\/p>\n
Only the GKPI bomb exploded, leaving 23 people injured.<\/p>\n
The trial was adjourned until next week to hear the case for
\nthe defense.<\/p>",
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