Bali bombers helped ambassador attack
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
A convict and three defendants in the Bali bombings trials admitted on Monday their involvement in the bombing of the Philippine ambassador's residence in Jakarta in 2000.
The four claimed that they had received the order from Hambali, the alleged top operative of the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist network in Asia who is currently under U.S. custody.
"Hambali asked me if I could provide a red Suzuki Carry minivan ... It was Hambali who asked for the car," said Amrozi, who was given the death sentence for his key role in the Bali bombings.
Amrozi took the stand as a witness at the hearing of the trial of Abdul Jabar, the main suspect in the bombing of the envoy's residence and two churches on Christmas Eve in Jakarta that year, at the Central Jakarta District Court.
When watching a news broadcast on the bombing on Aug. 1, 2000, -- which killed two people and injured 21 others, including then Philippine ambassador Leonides T. Caday -- Amrozi realized that the minivan, that he purchased for Rp 11.5 million (US$1,353), was used in the car bomb.
"I told Dulmatin (still a fugitive in Bali bombings case) that he should have told me (that the car would be used in the blast) so I could erase its engine number as I did in the Bali bombings," Amrozi said, adding that he had destroyed the vehicle's ownership document.
Amrozi, his younger brother Ali Imron and accomplices Mubarok and Sarjio alias Sawad admitted during the hearing that the minivan was brought all the way to Jakarta from Amrozi's hometown in Tenggulun village, Lamongan regency, East Java, several days before the bombing.
The four were flown to Jakarta on Sunday evening and took the flight back to the Bali police detention center after the hearing ended. Except Amrozi, who was wearing a Muslim outfit, the other three sported casual shirts and pants.
Led by prosecutor Suharto, the four-strong prosecution team failed to link Jabar to the bombing until they read the written deposition of Fatur Rohman al-Ghozi in which he asked Usman to recruit Jabar for the bombing of the ambassador's residence. The prosecutors even delayed the hearing for 25 minutes to hear Ali Imron because the police had difficulty releasing his handcuffs inside the courtroom.
Al-Ghozi, who is a fugitive after escaping prison while serving a 12-year prison term in the Philippines for possession of explosives, stated that he accepted Hambali's instruction "to help the Jakarta team to bomb the Philippine ambassador's residence" and that he had surveyed the residence one week prior to the bombing together with Usman and new recruit Jabar.
The minivan carried six packs of aluminum powder, potassium chlorate and sulfur bought from chemical store Tidar in Surabaya and was mixed into a paste by Sarjio during a stop in Cirebon, West Java.
It was Dulmatin, who is believed to be a detonator specialist, who completed the bomb.
The minivan and the bombs were later taken to Jakarta by Usman alias Edi Setiono alias Abas, who has received the death sentence for his involvement in the bombing of the Koinonia Church in East Jakarta and the Anglican church in Central Jakarta on Dec. 24.
The trial was adjourned until Monday.