Suspected bomb accomplices on trial

The trial of four suspected accomplices of the Cimanggis bomb incident began on Tuesday at Cibinong District Court in Bogor, West Java.

Earlier, on Monday, the court began the trial against Oman Rochman, alias Aman Abdurrahman, for allegedly masterminding a terrorist attack and giving orders to make bombs, as well as the hearings of four of his suspected accomplices.

Prosecutor Tikyono told the court presided over by Judge Edison Mochamad that Samin Saan alias Apip had violated the 2003 Antiterrorism Law for abetting in a terrorist attack and for the possession of explosives. The law carries the maximum sentence of death.

Samin is also charged under Article 13 of the Antiterrorism Law for providing a place for the alleged terrorist group members to undergo bomb-making and militia training.

In a separate hearing on Tuesday, presided over by Judge MS Adam, the prosecutors read out the charges against Syarif Hidayat, Kamaludin and Septiono.

The three were accused of undergoing militia training initiated by Oman, their teacher of Islam.

They were trained in martial arts, camouflage, arms and explosives handling, as well as bomb-making, between December 2003 and March 2004.

The prosecutors said the alleged trainees disguised themselves while training at the University of Indonesia campus in Depok by wearing long-sleeved black T-shirts reading Al-Asad Outdoor Activities Club.

The activities of the group were revealed when residual material from the explosives training apparently blew up a house on Jl. Bakti ABRI in Cimanggis on March 21. No fatalities were reported in the incident, but the explosion damaged the roof of the house, which was often used for bomb-making training.

Theresia Sufa