Remorse spares Bali bomber from death sentence<\/p>\n
Wahyoe Boediwardhana
\nand I Wayan Juniartha
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nDenpasar, Bali<\/p>\n
The remorse shown by key Bali bombing suspect Ali Imron earned
\ndividends on Thursday, as the Denpasar District Court sentenced
\nhim to life imprisonment.<\/p>\n
The sentence, however, was heavier than the penalty sought by
\nprosecutors, who had demanded 20 years in jail for Imron, the
\nthird main Bali bombing suspect to have been sentenced.<\/p>\n
The first two defendants, Amrozi and Abdul Aziz, alias Imam
\nSamudra, were sentenced to death, while the fourth main suspect,
\nAli Gufron, alias Mukhlas, faces the prospect of capital
\npunishment.<\/p>\n
\"We found the defendant legally and convincingly guilty of
\nplanning, conspiring and organizing a criminal act of terrorism
\nand therefore we sentence him to life imprisonment,\" presiding
\njudge Mulyani said in reading out the verdict.<\/p>\n
It was the first time in the bombing trial that judges had
\nhanded down a sentence that exceeded the prosecutors' demand.<\/p>\n
Chief prosecutor IGP Sulaba had asked the judges to exempt
\nImron from the firing squad, pointing to the fact that he had
\nalways been very cooperative in court and had shown remorse and
\nregret over the bombings. Imron had also repeatedly asked for
\nforgiveness from the victims, their families and the people of
\nBali and Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Imron had also openly condemned terrorism and, he said, the
\nviolent, misguided interpretation of the Islamic teaching of
\njihad.<\/p>\n
The bomb attacks on two popular nightspots in the popular
\ntourist resort of Kuta almost one year ago killed 202 people,
\nmostly foreigners, and injured hundreds of others.<\/p>\n
Despite the mitigating behavior shown by the defendant, the
\njudges were fully aware of the significant role he had played in
\nthe attacks, the most deadly act of terror since the attacks on
\nthe United States on Sept. 11, 2001.<\/p>\n
\"We saw that the defendant had played at least five important
\nroles in the bombings,\" judge Lilik Mulyadi said.<\/p>\n
Imron was involved in planning the bombings, acquiring the
\nL300 minivan that was later used as the car bomb, transporting
\nthe explosive compounds to Bali, assembling the bombs and placing
\none of the bombs near the U.S. Consular Agency office in Bali.<\/p>\n
\"The mitigating factors were overshadowed by the extent and
\nimportance of his role in the attacks,\" Lilik said.<\/p>\n
He added that fulfilling the prosecutors' sentence demand
\nwould be unfair.<\/p>\n
\"Let's compare it with Hernianto, who is implicated in the
\ncase only because he hosted a meeting held by the suspected
\nbombers,\" Lilik said.<\/p>\n
Hernianto now faces a 20-year jail sentence.<\/p>\n
\"Would it be fair (for Hernianto) if Ali Imron, who played
\nmany vital roles in the bombing, was sentenced to 20 years in
\nprison?\" Lilik asked.<\/p>\n
He asserted there was no dissenting opinion among the judges
\nin delivering their verdict.<\/p>\n
\"We unanimously agreed on the verdict, reached after we had
\nconsidered every significant fact and piece of evidence,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Upon hearing the verdict, Imron turned his increasingly pale
\nface downward, in stark contrast to the characteristic, wide
\nsmile and radiant face he displayed every time he entered the
\ncourtroom, as he had done earlier in the day.<\/p>\n
After consulting his chief lawyer, Suyanto, Imron told the
\njudges he needed time to consider whether to accept or appeal the
\nverdict.<\/p>\n
Separately, another member of the Solo Group, Bambang Setiono,
\nalias Saiful, alias Suroso, was sentenced to seven years in
\nprison for \"assisting known and wanted terrorists.\" The sentence
\nwas three years fewer than that demanded by the prosecutors.<\/p>\n
Bambang Setiono drove the rented car that transported Ali
\nGufron, Abdul Ghoni and Hernianto from the Central Java town of
\nWonogiri to neighboring Surakarta. At that time they were looking
\nfor a hiding place.<\/p>\n
As of Thursday, the court had convicted 11 defendants.<\/p>\n
Eighteen defendants are still on trial while three suspects
\nare still being examined by the prosecutor's office and the
\nremaining two are being interrogated by the police.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/remorse-spares-bali-bomber-from-death-sentence-1447893297",
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