Bali bomb mastermind Samudra loses appeal

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.