Bali bomb mastermind Samudra loses appeal
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Makassar/Denpasar
Imam Samudra, the mastermind behind the Bali bombings that killed 202 people last year, has lost his appeal, a court official said on Monday.
Samudra was the second terrorist to be sentenced to death whose appeal was turned down by the Bali High Court, after Amrozi bin Nurhasyim.
Bali High Court head I Made Tara was quoted by Antara as saying the court had turned down the appeals of Samudra and 10 other convicted terrorists who sought reduced sentences.
The 10 included Amrozi, Abdul Rauf, Andri Octavia, Junaedi, Andi Hidayat, Bambang Setiono and Ahmad Budi Wibowo, all sentenced by the Denpasar District Court.
Tara said the High Court will soon notify the District Court and the defendants' lawyers of the decision.
The District Court has handed down verdicts to 29 men linked to the Oct. 12 bombings. Tara said 15 of these had appealed.
It was not clear whether Samudra and others would file an appeal with the Supreme Court, as Amrozi has done.
Samudra, 33, was found guilty of being a leader in the al- Qaeda-linked Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terror group blamed for the bombings.
He had said with fervor that he welcomed death, as it would bring him closer to God. But when he was sentenced on Sept. 10, his lawyers said he would appeal, because he should have been tried under Islamic law.
Amrozi's brother, Mukhlas, has also said he will appeal his death sentence. Ali Imron, another brother, was given life -- he was the only key bomber to have expressed any remorse.
On Monday, Imron testified in the trial of Abdul Ghoni, who could face a firing squad if found guilty of helping to plan the attacks and assemble the bombs, and of possessing explosives.
Imron revised statements he made in earlier hearings, saying he had mistakenly said the bombers were given their tasks during a meeting at the home of Hernianto in Surakarta, Central Java.
He was quoted by AFP as saying he now remembered that the meeting was held at a house rented by Dulmatin, a key suspect still at large.
In a separate trial on Monday, Sarjiyo, alias Sawad, another defendant, admitted that he acquired the bomb-making skills because he once made firecrackers.
Imron also testified against Sarjiyo and told the court the defendant had acquired his bomb-making skills while a student.
"The defendant told me he graduated with a science major from high school. He also used to make firecrackers," he testified.
He said their relationship became close when Sarjiyo married Tri Indah, a student at his Islamic boarding school.
Imron confirmed that Sarjiyo had never been involved in any planning nor execution meetings for the attacks.
Separately, prosecutors in South Sulawesi sought 20 years for Arman, alias Galaxi, 31, who is on trial for providing explosives to militants who bombed a McDonald's restaurant on Dec. 5, 2002, in Makassar.
Police also blame the Makassar attack on JI.
Three people, including the bomber, were killed in the attack, while a second bombing damaged a car showroom shortly afterwards but caused no casualties.
Several men have been arrested for their role in the blasts, but key suspect Agung Abdul Hamid is still at large.