Reporters Invited to Witness Ali Imrons Hearing

TEMPO Interactive, Denpasar:The Police are to question Ali Imron--one of the Bali bombing suspectsin front of reporters. Inspector General Made Mangku Pastika, head of the Bali bombing investigation team, will question Ali Imron in the Rupatama Room at Bali Police Headquarters on Tuesday (11/2). Reporters are invited to witness the questioning of the step-brother of Amrozi, the main suspect in the Bali bombing , according to Bali Police spokesperson Y Suyatmo, on Monday (10/2). Suyatmo did not explain the reason why the reporters are to be permitted to witness the questioning. However, a source at the Bali Police said that the police want to assure the public that Ali Imron is able to make high explosive bombs like the one that exploded in Kuta, Bali, last October. It is just the same as the National Police Chief and Amrozi went before the public. [The Police Chief] wanted to assure public that Amrozi is not a fictional figure, the source said. The Police believe that Ali Imron played an important role in making bombs and increasing their power. Considering the discovery of various kinds of weapon in Tenggulun, Lamongan, East Java, it is also considered that Ali Imron is a weapons expert. Other than questioning Ali Imron, the investigation team will reconstruct the making of the bombs that exploded in Bali. The reconstruction will begin from obtaining the materials, mixing them, inserting a timer and then placing the bomb in a filing cabinet. It is planned that the reconstruction will take place at the Bali Police Headquarters, though the actual process was carried out at a house on Jalan Menjangan, Denpasar, Bali. Next week, 14 official reports of the Bali bombing suspects will be filed to Bali High Prosecutors Office. Meanwhile, Amrozis official report has been filed last week. So, there are 15 official reports, Suyatmo said. These reports are the results of investigation into Hernianto, Junaedi, Saiful, Maskuri, Ali Gufron, Andre Oktavia, Herlambang, Yudi Wibowo, Musafa, Maskur bin Abdul Kadir, Andi Hidayat, Abdurraruf, Imam Samudera, and Muhammad Najib. Three of the suspects--Imam Samudera, Amrozi, and Muhklashave been charged with masterminding and conducting the bombing. If theyre found guilty, they will therefore face the death sentence or at least life imprisonment. The other suspects face between four and 20 years imprisonment. (Rofiqi Hasan)