Another two terrorist suspects sentenced

Another two terrorist suspects sentenced

Andi Hajramurni, The Jakarta Post, Makassar, South Sulawesi

The Makassar District Court on Thursday sentenced Muchtar Daeng
Lau, 35, and Hamid Razzaq, 63, to prison terms of seven years and
two years respectively for their involvement in the bombings of a
McDonald's fast-food outlet and an automotive showroom in
December last year.

Hamid Razzaq is the father of Agung Abdul Hamid, the prime
suspect in the attack, who remains at large.

Reading out the verdict, presiding judge Jassolo Situmorang
said Muchtar was found guilty of concealing information on a
terrorist suspect. As a member of Laskar Jundullah group which
was led by Agung, Muchtar would have known about the planned bomb
attack, the judge said.

"But the defendant (Muchtar) failed to report (the
information) to the police. The failure left three people dead,
15 others injured and caused material losses," Situmorang said.

Prosecutors, who charged the defendant under the antiterrorism
law, had demanded 10 years in prison for Muchtar.

After hearing the verdict, Muchtar and his lawyer Abraham
Samad appealed. The lawyer said that the basis of the verdict was
too superficial.

"My client is convicted because he is a member of the group
and automatically knew about the planned act of terrorism. If
this is the case, then all members of the Laskar Jundullah can be
declared suspects," he said.

In a separate courtroom, presiding judge Andi Haedar sentenced
Hamid Razzaq to two years in prison, three years lower than
demanded by the prosecutors.

In their verdict, the panel of judges said that the defendant
was guilty of concealing information relating to the whereabouts
of explosives, potassium and TNT, stored by Agung at his house in
the regency of Barru in South Sulawesi.

The defendant, the judges said, did not report the information
to the police, an offense under the antiterrorism law.

Andi Haedar recalled that Agung had visited his father Hamid
and brother Imal Hamid in 2001 and informed them that he had been
storing explosives.

Responding to the verdict, Hamid's lawyer Adnan Buyung Azis
appealed because the antiterrorism law only came into effect in
2002, while Hamid received the information about the explosives
in 2001.

"The antiterrorism law does not recognize retroactivity. The
legal basis of the sentence is not valid," the lawyer said.