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Last Updated: Wednesday, 19 February, 2003, 09:42 GMT
Bali death toll set at 202
Bali bomb blast scene
88 of the dead were Australians
The final death toll from last October's bomb blasts on the tourist island of Bali is likely to be 202, Indonesian police said on Wednesday.

Police spokesman Yatim Suyatmo said this appeared to be the final figure, as there will no longer be an official team on the island working on victim identification.

The announcement came as police presented evidence against the alleged mastermind behind the Bali bombings, Imam Samudra.

The 1,500 page dossier on Mr Samudra - together with evidence on four of his alleged accomplices - was handed over to prosecutors on Wednesday.

Under Indonesian law, prosecutors decide if there is strong enough evidence to take a case to court.

Identification

The number of people who died in the 12 October attacks had previously been put at 194.

But Bali police spokesman Yatim Suyatmo said an additional eight people had died in hospitals overseas as a result of their injuries.

Imam Samudra
Imam Samudra
Aged 35
Has six aliases
May have learned bomb-making in Afghanistan
Computer expert

The investigation team, which includes both foreign and local experts, has now identified all but three bodies, Mr Suyatmo said.

Hundreds of body parts have also been collected, and are due to be buried on the island at a future date.

The two bombs, which ripped through a busy nightclub area in the island's popular Kuta district, killed mostly foreign tourists.

Australia suffered the greatest number of casualties, with 88 Australian nationals losing their lives.

Thirty-eight Indonesians, 26 Britons, nine Swedes, seven Americans, six Germans and four Dutch nationals also lost their lives.

In all, citizens from 21 countries were killed in the blasts.

Bombing suspects

Imam Samudra, 35, will be charged with organising and planning the Bali attacks, Mr Suyatmo said.

"This is a big step forward for the police," he said. "We want to finish a thorough investigation of those arrested in connection with the Bali bombings."

Imam Samudra was arrested on 21 November, while about to flee from Indonesia's main island of Java.

Police say he has already confessed to his part in the Bali attack, as well as involvement in a bombing in Batam on Christmas Eve 2000.

Under recently passed anti-terror regulations, he faces the death penalty if found guilty.

Of the four other suspects whose cases were filed on Wednesday, two could face the death penalty, according to Mr Suyatmo.

On Monday, police presented prosecutors with evidence against another key suspect, Ali Gufron, also known as Mukhlas.

Last week they presented evidence against his brother, Amrozi, whom they accuse of buying the minivan and explosives used in the attack.

So far, 29 people have been arrested in connection with the bombings. The first trials are expected to begin next month.

Imam Samudra is one of three suspects accused of being part of Jemaah Islamiah, a pan-Asian network of Muslim extremists which some governments have accused of plotting the attacks.




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