DENPASAR, DEWATA.NEWS – Testimony presented at the Denpasar District Court has revealed that the fatal shooting of Australian national Zivan Radmanovic at a private villa in Bali was not a spontaneous crime, but part of a planned operation allegedly directed by an unidentified mastermind.
During a hearing on Monday, January 5, prosecutors detailed how the defendants, Coskun Mevlut, Paea-i-Middlemore Tupou, and Darcy Francesco Jenson, coordinated their actions through encrypted messaging application Threema. Court testimony indicated that at least three separate chat groups were used to manage targets, weapons placement, and execution details.
One defendant told the panel of judges that a single individual controlled the entire operation but refused to reveal the identity, citing fears for family safety. This reluctance, prosecutors said, has so far prevented authorities from publicly identifying the alleged intellectual author behind the crime.
In court, Mevlut stated he was shocked to discover that the firearm provided at the scene was already loaded with live ammunition, claiming he had been instructed only to intimidate a target over a debt dispute. Tupou later testified that he fired his weapon in panic after seeing someone run toward him, believing the person to be the intended target, Sanar Ghanim. He said he later realized the victim was Radmanovic.
“I did not know I would kill him. I thought he was Sanar,” Tupou told the court.
Prosecutors also highlighted economic motives behind the attack. Mevlut said he was promised payment that he planned to use for marriage expenses, a promise that ultimately led him to travel to Bali and participate in the operation. He described chasing the intended target into a bathroom and firing shots at a glass shower door before fleeing the scene.
Evidence presented showed that Jenson allegedly financed much of the group’s travel and logistics, covering routes from Malaysia, Jakarta, and Surabaya, as well as villa accommodation in Bali. He also admitted purchasing a hammer used to force entry into the villa, though he claimed he was unaware it would be used in a violent crime.
“I found the request to buy a hammer strange, but I did not know it would be used for a crime. If I had known, I would not have bought it,” Jenson said.
According to prosecutors from the Badung District Prosecutor’s Office, Jenson received approximately Rp200 million in operational funds, allegedly routed through intermediaries including foreign nationals and local contacts. The money was used to finance accommodation, transportation, and allowances of Rp20–30 million for the other two defendants.
Despite claims of ignorance, prosecutors said Jenson continued to coordinate movements during the group’s escape toward Surabaya and sent messages seeking further instructions shortly after the shooting occurred.
The prosecution emphasized that the case will not end with the three defendants currently on trial. Authorities confirmed they are continuing to trace digital communications and financial flows in an effort to identify and charge the alleged mastermind behind the operation.
“We are committed to uncovering the individual who ordered and financed this crime,” prosecutors told the court.
The trial is ongoing as investigators work to establish the full chain of command behind one of Bali’s most closely watched criminal cases.