Indonesian court sentences 3 men for shooting death of fellow Australian in Bali

Indonesian Court Sentences Three Australians in Fatal Bali Shooting

Three Australian citizens were sentenced Monday by a court in Denpasar, Bali, for their roles in the fatal shooting of a fellow Australian last June, concluding a case that has highlighted growing concerns about violence involving foreign nationals on the popular tourist island.

Mevlut Coskun, 22, and Paea I Middlemore Tupou, 27, received 16-year prison sentences, while 24-year-old Darcy Jenson was handed a 12-year term for the killing of Zivan Radmanovic, a 32-year-old Melbourne resident. A second victim, Sanar Ghanim, 34, survived despite being shot and beaten during the attack.

The incident occurred while Radmanovic was in Bali celebrating his wife Jazmyn Gourdeas’ birthday, accompanied by her sister and Ghanim, who was her sister’s partner. According to court documents, Radmanovic suffered three gunshot wounds and blunt force trauma in the attack.

Prosecutors presented evidence that Jenson organized the attack while Coskun and Tupou carried it out. Indonesian authorities apprehended Jenson at Jakarta’s Soekarno Hatta International Airport in June as he attempted to flee the country. The other two defendants were later arrested in Singapore and Cambodia with Interpol’s assistance, demonstrating the cross-border cooperation that has become increasingly necessary in transnational crime cases.

During the trial, which began in October, the defendants claimed they had been offered payment to travel to Bali to intimidate Ghanim over an alleged debt. They consistently refused to identify the Australian man who allegedly hired them, citing fears for their families’ safety.

“The defendants maintained throughout the proceedings that they were acting on behalf of someone else,” said a legal analyst familiar with the case. “This suggests possible connections to organized crime extending beyond Indonesia’s borders.”

Indonesian investigators testified that the group received instructions from an unidentified individual referred to only as “Mr. X.” The court ultimately accepted that the defendants had acted in exchange for “a promised payment,” though the full circumstances surrounding the arrangement remain unclear.

The prosecution had requested sentences of 18 years for Coskun and Tupou, and 17 years for Jenson. However, the three-judge panel, led by Presiding Judge Wayan Suarta, issued slightly lighter sentences after considering mitigating factors.

“They are still young and have the chance to improve themselves in the future,” Judge Suarta stated during the sentencing. He emphasized that the punishment “is not intended as revenge, nor to degrade their dignity, but as a preventive measure so similar acts do not occur again.”

The judges acknowledged that the defendants had caused “deep trauma” to the victims’ families but noted that none of the three had prior criminal records and all had cooperated throughout the investigation and trial.

This case comes amid growing concerns about safety in Bali, Indonesia’s premier tourist destination. While violent crime involving foreigners remains relatively rare on the island, incidents like this risk damaging Bali’s reputation as authorities work to rebuild tourism following the pandemic downturn.

The Indonesian government has been strengthening security measures across tourist areas and enhancing international law enforcement cooperation to address these concerns. Tourism contributes approximately 4.1% to Indonesia’s GDP, with Bali being the centerpiece of the country’s tourism strategy.

The Australian government has not issued official comments on the verdicts, though Australian consular officials have been providing standard assistance to the defendants throughout the legal process, in line with international protocols.

All three defendants have the right to appeal their sentences under Indonesian law, though their legal representatives have not yet indicated whether they plan to do so.