Another bombing defendant gets 9 years imprisonment

BANDUNG (JP): In less than a week, the Bandung District Court sentenced the second accused to nine years imprisonment on Wednesday for his role in the fatal bombing on Christmas Eve last year, in which four people were killed.

Roni Miliar, 21, according to presiding judge Akmal Amid, had violated Paragraph 1, Article 1 of Emergency Law No. 12/1951 and Paragraph 1, Article 55 of the Indonesian Criminal Code by illegally using explosives.

On June 28 the same court handed down a nine-year jail term to Roni's friend, Agus Kurniawan, for his role in the bomb blast.

Roni had earlier admitted that he, Agus and Wawan (an accomplish who was killed in the blast) were paid Rp 50,000 by a man identified as Akim to scout three churches on Jl. Gatot Subroto, Jl. Achmad Yani and Jl. Diponegoro on Dec. 23 and Dec. 24 of last year.

Akim was killed in the blast.

The verdict for Roni was six years lighter than the prosecutors' demand.

The blast that hit the West Java capital of Bandung on Dec. 24 took place in a two-story shop-house at Jl. Antapani 45 belonging to Aceng Suhari, who is being tried separately over the bombing.

"The defendant, along with Agus had gone frequently to the house since Dec. 18 and was at the scene of the accident when the bomb exploded on Dec. 24," the judge said.

The bomb, set to be placed in one of the churches, unexpectedly exploded in Aceng's house.

Police believe that the Bandung explosions were connected with other bomb blasts in other towns in West Java, East Java and Riau on the same day.

After consulting his lawyer Haneda Sri Lastoto, Roni, who has been under detention for six months, told the court he would appeal. (25/sur)