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Court puts Imron behind bars for life

Bali bombing suspect Ali Imron enters the courtroom ahead of his sentencing, in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, yesterday. PHOTO: AP

Ali Imron, one of the few defendants to express remorse over the terrorist attacks on Indonesia's Bali island, was sentenced yesterday to life in prison for his role in the bombings that killed 202 people.

"Ali Imron has been found guilty in a legal and convincing manner of terrorism," said Judge Mulyani, who read out the verdict.

Mulyani, who goes by a single name, ignored a prosecution demand that Imron be given a 20-year prison sentence but refused to give him death as allowed under Indonesian law.

Mulyani said the judges took into consideration Imron's expressions of remorse and his cooperation with authorities, including testifying against other Bali defendants.

"He has been helpful ... he shows remorse and he has instructed his students and family not to follow the path of violence as he has done," Mulyani said in his summation.

"But his crime is extraordinary. Not only has he been responsible for killing 202 people but his crime has had far-reaching effects on the community."

Imron told the court that he was considering appealing the verdict.

Imron's older brother Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, and the mastermind of the Bali attack, Imam Samudra, have already been sentenced death. Both defiantly defended the bombings as necessary to avenge the treatment of Muslims at the hands of the US and Israel.

Imron, a 33-year-old Islamic boarding school teacher, was arrested in January. He has admitted building one of the two bombs that ripped through two, packed nightclubs and driving a bomb-laden minivan to the site of the attack.

Shortly after his arrest, Imron gave a bizarre press conference in which he apologized to the victims' families and showed how he and others allegedly assembled the explosives.

In court, he broke down in tears several times said he believed the attacks were not in accordance with Islamic teachings.

Imron is one of more than 35 people arrested over the blasts and nine have been convicted so far, with sentences ranging from seven years to death.

The Bali attack is blamed on the Jemaah Islamiyah network, which reportedly wants to turn much of Southeast Asia into an Islamic state. The network's commander, Riduan Isamuddin Hambali, was captured last month in Thailand and is in US custody.

Jemaah Islamiyah also is accused of directing last month's car bombing of a US-owned hotel in Jakarta which killed 12 people. At least nine suspects have been arrested in connection with the blast, but none have been formally charged.

Earlier this month, a court in Jakarta sentenced Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir to four years in prison for sedition but acquitted him of heading Jemaah Islamiyah. The verdict has been appealed.
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