The Jakarta Post, 5/20/2004 6:24:55 PM
Bali bomb brothers refuse to testify in upcoming trial of Ba'asyir
JAKARTA (AFP): Three brothers who played key roles in the Bali bomb attacks
refused to testify in the scheduled trial of Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, a top Muslim cleric
accused of terrorism, a lawyer said on Thursday.
"I met with Ali Imron at the Jakarta police headquarters ... He said that he and his two
other brothers have been told to testify in the trial of Ustadz (teacher) Abu Bakar
Ba'asyir but they say they refused," lawyer Achmad Michdan told AFP.
Imron has been sentenced to life for his role in the Bali bomb attacks that killed 202
people in October, 2002. His two elder brothers -- Amrozi and Ali Ghufron alias
Mukhlas -- are on death row for their part in the blasts.
The brothers have not given a reason for their refusal to testify in Ba'asyir's case.
Michdan said police have compiled a list of about 50 witnesses to testify in the trial of
Ba'asyir, who police say will face charges of terrorism.
"Almost all those convicted in the Bali bombings are to testify in the trial," Michdan
said.
More than 30 people were convicted for the Bali attacks, whose victims were mostly
Western holidaymakers.
Michdan said Imron and several other convicts have been moved from their jails to
Jakarta police cells as detectives prepare their case against Ba'asyir, 65.
He said police are also seeking testimony from Abu Rusdan, who has been
sentenced to more than three years in jail for acting as caretaker leader of the
Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) regional extremist group.
Police say they have new evidence that Ba'asyir headed the Al-Qaeda-linked JI and
that he will be charged with involvement in its terrorist attacks between 1999 and 2002
-- including the Balibombings. >
Police have questioned witnesses detained in Malaysia, the Philippines and
Singapore to build the new case against Ba'asyir, who was rearrested on April 30
moments after completing a prison sentence for immigration violations.
A Jakarta court last September jailed Ba'asyir for four years for involvement in a JI plot
to overthrow the government but said there was no proof he led the network.
An appeal court overturned the treason conviction but ruled that Ba'asyir must serve
three years for immigration-related offenses. The Supreme Court halved that sentence.
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