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November 22, 2006
Indonesia: Jail Terms For Men Who Sheltered Islamist
News from Xinhua reports that today an Islamic teacher was sentenced to a term of life imprisonment by a District Court in Semarang, Central Java.
33-year old Subur Sugiarto had been arrested in January, accused of sheltering the Islamist Noordin Mohammed Top. Top (pictured, right) was a leading member of Jemaah Islamiyah, and had helped in the logistics of the bombings at Bali on October 12, 2002 (202 dead), and October 1 2005 (20 dead). Top had also been a recruiter and financier for Jemaah Islamiyah.
Subur Sugiarto, who also uses the alias Abu Mujahid, was primarily convicted of sheltering Top, but additionally convicted of illegal arms possession. Sugiarto had been arrested on Tuesday, January 17 in Central Java, while on a bus in the town of Boyolali, destined for Jakarta.
Sugiarto is the latest of several individuals convicted of sheltering Noordin Mohammed Top. His sentence is the longest so far issued, reflecting the court's belief that he was a top henchman of the terrorist. He is also thought to have acted as a recruiter to Jamaah Islamiyah, and had recruited the three young men who carried out the 2005 Bali bombing (pictured from their "farewell videos").
At another trial in Semarang, Jakarta Post reports that another man, Ardi Wibowo, has been convicted of "acting as a liaison" between Noordin Mohammed Top and other militants. He was given a sentence of six years' imprisonment.
Judges said Wibowo, who was arrested in January, knew of Top's location before he had been apprehended by authorities, but had failed to inform authorities.
Malaysian-born Noordin Mohammed Top had, according to Dr Sidney Jones of the International Crisis Group, built up a substantive terror network during his time as a recruiter, financier and logistics expert for Jemaah Islamiyah.
Noordin Top's last confirmed location was Binangu village near Wonosobo, Central Java, which was raided on April 29 this year. Two of his henchmen, Jabir and Abdul Hadi, were killed in the raid, but Top fled. His current location is unknown and he is still a fugitive. It is believed by some analysts that Top had split from the Jemaah Islamiyah leadership over the issue of Muslims dying in Jemaah Islamiyah attacks. He is said to now be heading his own terror group.
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at November 22, 2006 7:11 AM
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