The Jakarta Post, February 18, 2003
Another Makassar bombing suspect arrested
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Police in South Sulawesi have arrested another suspect in last December's bombing
in the provincial capital of Makassar, which left three people dead and 11 others
injured.
Amran, 34, was arrested in Luwu Utara subdistrict, Malangke regency, on Saturday
and was taken to Makassar on Sunday evening for questioning, Antara news agency
reported on Monday.
"He (Amran) is the 21st suspect to have been arrested," South Sulawesi Police
spokesman Adj. Comr. Aidil was quoted as saying.
He said the arrest followed intensive questioning of several other detained suspects,
including Anton, alias Iyat, who was arrested in December 2002.
Aidil said the police were still searching for four other suspects -- Agung Hamid,
Hizbullah Rasyid, Mirzal, alias Ghozi, and Dahlan.
Agung is the alleged mastermind of the bombing of the McDonald's outlet on Dec. 5.
Police say he fled with several bombs following the attack.
Investigators have described Hizbullah, Mirzal and Dahlan as field coordinators for the
Agung-led group blamed for the blast.
Amran arrived at the South Sulawesi Police Headquarters at about 10:30 p.m. on
Sunday under tight security. Among those accompanying the suspect was the top
detective of the Luwu Police, Adj. Comr. Firman.
Firman said investigators working the Makassar bombing had found that Amran
attended a meeting at Agung's house to plan the attack.
Amran also accompanied Agung to the troubled town of Poso in Central Sulawesi,
which has been torn apart by sectarian fighting since 2000, he said.
These findings were corroborated by testimony from witnesses, according to the
officer.
The McDonald's attack took place only about two months after the October bombings
on the resort island of Bali, which killed nearly 200 people and injured some 300
others, most foreigner tourists.
The National Police have linked the Bali blasts and the Makassar attack, blaming
both on the regional terror group Jamaah Islamiyah.
Investigators say Agung Hamid is a colleague of Imam Samudra, the alleged
mastermind of the Bali attacks. The two suspects are both believed to have attended
terrorist training camps in Afghanistan.
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