Ali Imron found guilty of planning Bali bombing

DENPASAR, BALI - Wearing a dark suit and tie, clean-shaven Muslim militant Ali Imron sat calmly as an Indonesian court read its findings before pronouncing him guilty of the primary charge of planning an act of terrorism.

"The element of planning has been legally and convincingly proven," said Judge Lilik Mulyadi.

He was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The charges against Ali Imron carried a maximum penalty of death by firing squad, but prosecutors asked for a 20-year sentence, noting that he has expressed sorrow his actions killed innocent people and has urged family and supporters not to imitate him.

Reading in turns for more than three hours, judges accepted the prosecution's case that Imron helped make the bombs, helped deliver a bomb-laden car to the targeted nightclubs and planted another bomb near the US consulate general in Denpasar.

"The defendant, with Arnasan and Iqbal, rode a Mitsubishi L-300 minivan which had a bomb in it. The driver of the car was the defendant," one of the five judges told the court.

"When the car reached the Kuta intersection he got out and Arnasan took over the car and parked it in front of the Sari Club."

The Bali blasts last October 12 killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists partying at Sari Club and Paddy's Bar at the famed Kuta beachstrip which were frequented by Westerners.

Arnasan died in the Sari Club blast while Iqbal, who was wearing a vest filled with explosives, died in Paddy's.

Judges in earlier cases sent two men to death row on charges similar to those against Imron, but they had showed neither remorse nor his cooperative attitude.

Another key Bali bombing suspect on trial, Mukhlas, will hear his verdict on October 2.

Prosecutors have asked for death for Mukhlas, Imron's older brother, who police say is a senior leader of the Jemaah Islamiah Muslim group.

Police and prosecutors have said the Bali attacks were the work of Jemaah Islamiah, an al Qaeda-linked Southeast Asian militant network accused of plotting violence across the region.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Bali bomb blast