Suspects in Palu church bombings to stand trial

The Jakarta Post Jakarta

Three people suspected of involvement in the New Year's bombing of four churches in the Central Sulawesi capital of Palu will stand trial on Tuesday, says a judge.

"Three suspects will stand trial on May 28, 2002 at the Palu District Court and they will be tried separately," Abdul Rachim, chief of the Palu District Court, said in Palu on Wednesday.

Rachim explained that the suspects, named as YN, Mu and An, would undergo three separate sessions at the court with their own prosecutors and judges.

He added that he would preside over the trial of YN with judges Tahsin and Ferdinandus while the prosecution would be conducted by Soewarsono.

The trials of Mu and An would be led by Achmad Iswadi and Hartopo, he added.

According to Law No. 12/1951 on emergency state, the three suspects are facing life sentences or the death penalty for illegal possession of explosives.

The three were arrested just a few hours after the bombing of the four churches. There were no casualties in the incidents in which several parts of the churches were badly damaged.

The incident that seriously damaged four Protestant churches in the city and occurred on the eve of the 2002 New year.

The police have also seized several explosive and bomb manuals from the a suspect's house in the city. --Antara