Nahdlatul Ulama leader Roisul Hukama is escorted by police after Surabaya District Court acquitted him Tuesday (April 16th) of all charges related to violence against Indonesia's minority Shiites, due to lack of evidence. In August 2012, a mob of 500 Sunni Muslims rampaged in nearby Sampang district, attacking Shiites, burning their homes and killing two. [Juni Kriswanto/AFP]

SURABAYA, Indonesia – The Surabaya District Court on Tuesday (April 16th) acquitted Nahdlatul Ulama leader Roisul Hukama of all charges stemming from an August 2012 rampage in Sampang that left two people dead, local media reported.

The court heard testimony from 21 witnesses, none of whom could directly place Rois at the scene, according to The Jakarta Globe.

"There was only one witness who said the defendant was among the mob who attacked the Shiite Muslims, and the panel of judges doubted the testimony because the witness did not see it directly," Judge Ainur Rofiq said. "He heard it from someone else."

A mob of 500 Sunni Muslims rampaged through a village in Sampang's Omben subdistrict on August 26th, hacking one Shiite to death and torching more than 30 houses, an attack that drove the Shiite community from their homes.

Those who remained or refused to convert to Sunni Islam were forced to live in a nearby sports complex.

Seven men originally detained in the wake of the attacks have been released due to lack of evidence, according to The Globe.