Gun Gun says charges baseless

JAKARTA: The lawyer representing terror suspect Rusman Gunawan, alias Gun Gun, said on Wednesday state prosecutors lacked the evidence to bring his client to trial.

"The case file does not describe (the alleged crimes) as clearly and as in depth as required. Most of the accusations are based on conjecture rather than evidence," lawyer Acmad Michdan told the court.

Citing an example, he said prosecutors failed to prove the al- Ghuraba organization his client founded was involved in terrorist activities.

Gun Gun, the brother of terror suspect Riduan Ishamuddin, alias Hambali, the alleged head of the Jamaah Islamiyah terrorist network, was deported from Pakistan last December along with five other Indonesian students. The six were arrested upon their arrival in Indonesia.

The defendant is charged with channeling funds from Hambali to the perpetrators of last year's J.W. Marriott Hotel bombing in Jakarta. -- JP