Bali trial begins for 3 accused of Australian's murder / Photo: © AFP
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Bali trial begins for 3 accused of Australian's murder
The trial of three Australians accused of plotting the murder of a compatriot at a villa on the Indonesian resort island of Bali began Thursday, with all facing the death penalty.
Prosecutors read out charges of premeditated murder for Darcy Jenson, 37, Paea-I-Middlemore Tupou, 37, and Coskun Mevlut, 23, over the shooting of 32-year-old Australian national Zivan Radmanovic in June.
He was killed when two people burst into his villa in the tourist hub of Badung and at least one opened fire.
Jenson was arrested at the airport in the Indonesian capital Jakarta on suspicion of trying to leave the country, while the other two were returned from abroad.
Jenson is accused of supplying equipment and organising the attack at the villa while the other two suspects are accused of being the gunmen, according to media reports.
The three suspects are also accused of involvement in the shooting of a second man at the villa, 34-year-old Sanar Ghanim, who was seriously wounded.
"Since there is no objection from the defendants on the indictment, we will continue with evidence and witnesses," the presiding judge Wayan Suarta told the court.
Radmanovic's wife, Jazmyn Gourdeas, attended the trial in Bali's provincial capital Denpasar.
"She wants to make sure her husband gets the justice that he needs... that's why she decided to come today," her lawyer Sary Latief told reporters.
When asked what punishment Gourdeas would like to see handed to the suspects, her lawyer said: "The death sentence. She would like to see the maximum penalty."
The trial will continue on November 3.
Gun crime on the island of Bali and wider Indonesia is rare, and the archipelago nation has strict laws for illegal gun possession.
C.Weber--BP
