Malaysian terrorists' Cuba trial hears of pain, suffering of families after 2002 Bali bombings
Published on: Friday, January 26, 2024
By: FMT
.%5B4%5D.jpg "Malaysian terrorists' Cuba trial hears of pain, suffering of families after 2002 Bali bombings")
Nazir Lep (left) and Farik Amin have been detained in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for their role in bomb attacks in Bali and Jakarta more than 20 years ago.
PETALING JAYA: The sentencing phase of the two Malaysians accused in the Guantanamo terror trial yesterday heard of the suffering of the families of the victims and the agonising deaths of their loved ones in the 2002 Bali bombings.
The relatives of the victims read their sworn statements in front of an eight-member jury, who will decide on the sentences of Farik Amin and Nazir Lep, who had both pleaded guilty last week to conspiring in the bomb attack that killed 202 people.
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The prosecution has lined up 11 relatives of the victims from the US, UK and Australia to read their sworn statements. They may be subjected to cross-examination if the defence chooses to do so.
According to the US-based online portal Benar News, Susanna Miller of the UK recounted how she had travelled to Bali after her brother, Dan, 31, was reported missing.
Reading her victim’s statement against the duo, she testified that her brother’s body could only be identified through DNA testing.
“These were real humans who have suffered … agonising deaths,” Miller told the military court.
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Miller said Dan’s wife, Polly, survived the attack but suffered burns over nearly half of her body, adding that she had to undergo several surgeries.
She said the incident would stay with her forever.
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“I spoke at Dan’s wedding and his funeral and now I’m here,” she told the court.
Florida couple Frank Heffernan and Bonnie Hall told the court about Heffernan’s daughter, Megan, who was 28 when she was killed in the bombing.
“Megan’s loss will be with us forever,” he said, adding he thought about her and prayed for her every day.
Matthew Arnold of Birmingham, England, whose brother, Timothy, 43, was killed in the bombing, said his brother lived in Singapore with his fiancé, a Thai national.
She had to return to Bangkok after his death. “His fiancé was pregnant but ended up losing the baby.
“Timothy’s death also hurt his father, who died in 2010. It was as if the life drained out of him at that moment,” Arnold said. “He never recovered from his loss.”
The hearing will resume on Thursday morning (late night today in Malaysia). The two brothers of Farik – Faizal and Fadli – will have the opportunity to address the court to mitigate.
The Malaysians were first charged together with the Indonesian “mastermind” Encep Nurjaman in 2018.
They were slapped with nine offences linked to the 2002 bombings of nightclubs in Bali, which killed 202 people, and the 2003 Marriott hotel bombing in Jakarta, which led to 11 deaths.
In pleading guilty, Nazir and Farik agreed to testify against Encep, who is more commonly known as Hambali, in a pre-trial agreement which includes a sentence of between 20 and 25 years and repatriation to a third country after the sentence.
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