JSX bombers get 20-year jail each

JAKARTA (JP): The South Jakarta District Court sentenced two defendants to 20-years imprisonment each on Monday for their role in last year's bombing of the Jakarta Stock Exchange building, which killed 10 people and injured 46 others.

The verdict was presented by the presiding judge, Rusman Dani Achmad, during the trial of Tengku Ismuhadi Jafar, 30 and Nuryadin alias Nadin, 29.

Prosecutor Endang Rachwan had earlier asked the court to give Jafar a death sentence and Nuryadin a life sentence.

Nuryadin was tried in absentia since he escaped from Cipinang Penitentiary in East Jakarta last month.

Jafar, who looked calm during the trial, said that he respected the verdict.

"It is more 'humane' than the sentence request demanded by the prosecutor," he said.

However, he insisted that he was framed by investigators.

"I will file an appeal since I am innocent. I will go anywhere in the world to seek justice, I am even ready for an international trial," he remarked.

The court rejected Jafar's defense about being framed by investigators.

"It is hard to understand how investigators could create a description that is so very complete and accurate, unless the suspects admitted it themselves," judge Rusman said.

The court found Jafar guilty of planning the bombing, utilizing his auto repair shop to make the bomb and delivering it to the JSX building on Sept. 13, 2000, while Nuryadin was proven guilty of assembling and delivering the bomb.

The bombing was meant to damage the country's economy and particularly to increase the strength of the dollar against the rupiah, according to the judge.

On Sept. 11, 2000, Jafar went to the parking lot in the JSX building basement along with the other suspects, Irwan and Ibrahim Amd bin Abdul Wahab, to reveal the location where the bomb would be put.

The next day, Nuryadin bought 43 TNT (trinitrotoluene) bars, as ordered by Irwan, a former member of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus). They, along with Ibrahim Amd bin Abdul Wahab and Corp. Ibrahim Hasan, a former member of Army's Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad), made the bomb with the TNT bars.

On the same day, Jafar withdrew Rp 176 million from Bank BNI to buy dollars.

Two days later, Nuryadin put the bomb to a Toyota Mark II car. He, Jafar and Ibrahim Amd bin Abdul Wahab then went to JSX building in Jafar's car. Irwan followed Jafar's car in the Toyota Mark II.

Irwan was the one who detonated the bomb in the parking lot of the building.

Meanwhile, Jafar's lawyer, Johnson Panjaitan from the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association said the court failed to reveal the motive of the bombing.

"I feel very disappointed that the court revealed the facts that had been manipulated by investigators," he said. (04)