Porn found on computer of Bali bombing accused, court hears

PORNOGRAPHIC pictures and a link to a website claiming responsibility for last year’s Bali bombings were discovered on the computer of an Islamic militant accused of masterminding the attack, an Australian police officer told his trial yesterday.

Imam Samudra is accused of playing a key planning and organisational role in the October 12 nightclub bombings, which killed 202 people, including 26 Britons.

The 32-year-old computer expert is one of 35 people arrested in the attack and one of several key suspects already on trial.

Nicholas Klein, from the Australian Federal Police’s hi-tech crimes unit, said pornographic photos were found on Samudra’s laptop computer, which was seized when he was arrested on November 20.

He said officers also recovered several images of victims of the bombings, as well as photos of Abu Bakar Bashir, the alleged head of Jemaah Islamiyah, the al Qaida-linked group blamed for the blasts.

Samudra, who has admitted playing a role in the attack, strenuously denied having the photos on his computer, and accused the police of planting them.

“Those files were slipped in from outside. I have evidence,” he said.

Mr Klein also said police found a link to a web page on which a letter from an Islamic group claims responsibility for the bombings. The site claimed the attack was in revenge for alleged persecution of Muslims.