Churh bomber gets 12 years in jail
M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Central Jakarta District Court sentenced a Malaysian on Thursday to 12 years in jail for his involvement in the July 22, 2001, bombing of Santa Anna Catholic Church, East Jakarta, that killed one and injured 67 other congregants during a full morning service.
Judges found Nur Misuari, alias Nurdin, 25, guilty of illegal explosives possession.
"The court is convinced that the defendant possessed, assembled, carried and used the explosives in violation of the 1951 Emergency Law," presiding judge Zainal Abidin Sangadji read the verdict.
Both the prosecution and defense said they would appeal.
The sentence, which is retroactive and will be reduced by the time Misuari has spent in detention since April 22, 2003, is three years more lenient than the prosecution's request.
Misuari was charged with mixing Research Development Formula Explosive (RDX) and trinitrotoluene (TNT) to compose a bomb and with targeting the church on Jl. Arafuru, Pondok Bambu district. His accomplice, Asep, alias Abdullah, planted the bomb.
In his defense, Misuari pleaded innocent and said he had only obeyed orders to take Asep, who is still at large, by motorcycle to the church. He said Asep was carrying a black plastic bag.
Dozens of victims were severely injured and survived the blast only after undergoing numerous operations and intensive care treatment. Some sustained permanent injuries, as doctors had to amputate limbs damaged in the blast.
A number of victims were blinded and lost their hearing in the blast.
In the indictment, the prosecution recounted that the church bombing followed the nationwide 2000 Christmas Eve bombings involving Imam Samudra, the mastermind of the Oct. 12, 2002, Bali bombing.
Samudra, a member of the regional terrorist network Jamaah Islamiyah, was sentenced to death by the Denpasar District Court in September 2003. The Bali bombing killed 202 people, mostly foreign holidaymakers.
The series of bombings are believed to be retaliation for the deaths of Muslims in the bloody sectarian conflict in Maluku.