NINE Australians arrested in a Bali heroin bust will face a firing squad if convicted of trying to smuggle drugs out of Indonesia into Australia, the head of the island's police anti-drugs squad said today.

Australian consular officials said it was "by far" the largest number of drug-related detentions of Australians ever in Indonesia.

Indonesian investigators said a total of 11.25kg of heroin had been seized.

The Australians – eight men and one woman – were arrested by Indonesian authorities last night following an Australian Federal Police (AFP) operation dating back to February.

Five were arrested at Bali airport while waiting for a flight to Sydney.

Four were held at the departure lounge allegedly with bags of heroin strapped to their bodies, Colonel Bambang Sugiarto, the head of the island's police anti-drugs squad, said.

A fifth man – the alleged 21-year-old Sydney drug ring boss nicknamed the "Godfather" – was pulled off the Australian Airlines plane with no drugs and later protested his innocence when paraded before reporters.

Prisoner Name
C/O- LPM Kerobokan Jl.
Tangkuban Perahu Kerobokan,
Denpasar 80117 Bali, INDONESIA

Sample Letter to The Australian Government to assist the plight of the 6 Australian's on Death Row in Indonesia & to abolish the death penalty

A letter gives hope to those who find themselves in despair. If you would like to write a letter to an Australian detained in Bali then please address it as follows: Insert Prisoner name
C/- LPM Kerobokan
Jl. Tangkuban Perahu
Kerobokan, Denpasar 80117
Bali, INDONESIA

Please let them know that you were given their details by the Foreign Prisoner Support Service. It can be a bit confusing having a complete stranger suddenly write to you and not knowing how they came by writing. At least if you mention our service then they will understand how you got their details. We are making every effort to support them. If you do receive a reply to your letter then please let us know.

A few simple rules to letter writing:

When writing a letter it is important to follow a few simple rules so that a prisoner's situation is not in any way jeopardized.

1. Always be polite
2. Do not talk about their case
3. Do not say anything offensive to the Judicial of Indonesia
4. Never give the impression that you are politically opposed to the Government
5. Be positive and try and bring a little sunshine to their day
6. Talk of things in general ie: sports, TV programs,
7. Religion is best left out of conversations unless the prisoner indicates their choice of faith.

Books provide inspiration and sometimes, they can motivate a person to think about life beyond their current isolation. Books take you on a journey and often when you are caught in despair, you need a place to go where you can find peace or at best, a little distraction. Books can also be thought provoking and lead people on a better path than the one which brought them to their current situation. But no matter what the care package item is whether it be soap, toiletries, cigarettes, a towel, or a pack of paper and envelopes, every little thing helps the prisoner endure the long journey ahead.

Care packages can be sent directly to the prisoner at Kerobokan Prison. Please address the same as if sending a letter. A receipt will be given to the prisoner from the post office and they can ask a guard to pick up their package. There is a fee to pay to the post office, small packages cost around 50cents to collect and larger ones cost $1. [Those prisoners without money may request the Embassy to assist them].

Examples of Care Package items:

You should establish regular contact with the prisoner before sending anything.

** Be aware that journalists are not now allowed to be on the prison grounds without special approval.

You may be required to pay a small amount of rupiah to the prison guard upon entry. As of 2006, this was 5000 rupiah but that amount may fluctuate. Don't be afraid of the prison guards, they are often most helpful. You will be required to leave your belongings with the guards so don't take anything valuable. Of course, you are usually permitted to keep hold of your wallet but ID will be collected when you leave the prison.

If you are still uncertain about how to visit a prisoner then FPSS can highly recommend Taxi Driver SIMON. Mobile: 0817 367 301 [Bali number]. Simon took FPSS advocate Kay Danes to the Denpassar District Court and Kerobokan prison when she was last in Bali. He helped her communicate with the prison authorities to gain entry, which was quite an event given the media presence at that time. Simon is a lovely Balinese man and like many Balinese, he has a very compassionate heart. FPSS recommend his taxi services to anyone thinking of travelling to Bali. Simon speaks English well, is a Christian and has a lovely wife and two daughters he calls his 'princesses'. Financial Support

Without financial support most prisoners detained in foreign prisons find life most difficult. DO NOT send cash in the mail. If you would like to assist an Australian detained overseas financially then please contact us.

Dossier ... the file on the Bali Nine that was handed over to the court yesterday

The Daily Telegraph can now reveal the details of the conspiracy that led the youngsters to try to smuggle 8.65kg of heroin out of Bali and land them on death row.

The evidence also contains details of all the phone calls between them.

Prosecutors yesterday officially handed the material to the Denpasar District Court, signalling that the group has now been officially charged. Trials will follow within a month.

The file on Andrew Chan, one of the two alleged ringleaders, along with Myuran Sukumaran, is almost twice the size of the rest – testament to the important role police believe he played.

The files also say the mules were forced by threats of violence to put their lives on the line.

They also confirm the involvement of a 22-year-old Thai woman, Cherry Likit Bannakorn, alias Pina, who delivered the heroin to Bali but slipped through a police dragnet a day after the Bali Nine were arrested.

A taxi driver, Dewa Gede Risdana Mesi, said in a statement that he delivered her to Kuta Seaview Cottages, where she met Chan. She was carrying a suitcase.

The surveillance photographs show Scott Rush and Michael Czugaj relaxing in the swimming pool of the Hotel Aneka in Kuta a week before their arrests.

Another shows Chan and Sukumaran on a staircase at the Hard Rock Hotel.

• Click Here for Full Story

Death ... Australian drug traffickers, from left, Si Yi Chen, Matthew Norman and Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen. Inset: Scott Rush / Reuters, AP

The court imposed the new death sentences on Scott Rush (20), Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen (23), Si Yi Chen (21), and the youngest of the group, 19-year-old Matthew Norman, Fairfax newspapers report today.

None of the nine, their families or their lawyers have been officially informed of the new sentences, which were uncovered by Fairfax in a search of Supreme Court records in Jakarta and confirmed with court authorities.

The last three members of the Bali Nine have been jailed for life as judges rejected pleas for mercy and one of their top defence lawyers admitted that clemency hopes for the convicted heroin smugglers were slim.

A day after the two ringleaders of the failed heroin trafficking operation were handed death sentences, Denpasar District Court judges said would-be mules Matthew Norman and Si Yi Chen should receive the same life terms meted out to four mules who were arrested with the 8kg stash.

Senior gang lieutenant Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen, tried alongside Norman and Chen, was also handed a life sentence.

Norman's mother Robyn Davies said the ruling was just a step off the worst possible result.

"It's better that being shot I suppose," she said grimly, appealing to the Indonesian government to treat her 19-year-old son well in the long years ahead without family.

"Look after him, feed him and give good health up to him," she said.

The trio showed little reaction as the widely-tipped sentence was handed down by chief judge Istiningsih Rahayu.

• Click Here for Complete Story

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Life sentence call for Bali 9 accused

Please find below a brief update on our main efforts...

1. FPSS are in contact with the Legal Representatives currently launching a Constitutional Challenge in Indonesia. We have taken advice from them in how best we can support those on death row and have pledged support to all future campaign strategies in accordance with their advice.

2. FPSS advocates are continuing to lobby Australian Government Members of parliament in Canberra to ensure the concerns of our members are known to the Australian Government.

3. FPSS letters of appeal have been sent to various Indonesian Government members. These have respectfully appealed for mercy on behalf of those on death row.

4. FPSS have continued to advise other lobby groups and human rights committees on the various ways of proceeding to ensure the integrity of the campaign is maintained.

5. FPSS advocates are in close and direct contact with the Australians on death row in Bali and are fully compliant with their wishes.

6. FPSS advocates are continuing to provide practical support where possible to the families and to the prisoners themselves. WE also advise visitors to our site on how they can support the Australians detained in Bali, how to write letters, how to send care packages, how to assist financially. We are pleased to hear that over the past twelve months, a large number of FPSS members have even travelled to Bali and made direct contact with the Australians and are continuing that support.

7. FPSS are maintaining good relations with various media groups interested in these cases and ensuring that the information provided to them is accurate, appropriate and condusive to the current legal strategies in place and requests by family/prisoners.

8. FPSS continue to maintain positive relations with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade [DFAT] and Attorney General's Office in the interests of maintaining the appropriate level of integrity to this campaign effort. We are pleased to report that DFAT are working extensively to provide a high level of consular support. Feedback from some of the Australians who have written to us recently, is that they are very happy with the level of consular support provided to them, understanding the difficulties of their situation.

Rest assured that FPSS are doing everything possible to support the Australians detained in Bali. FPSS do not condone drug trafficking or illegal actions of any persons. FPSS does not condone the use of the death penalty. The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. It violates the right to life. Click Here for the ForeignPrisoners.com Death Penalty Page