LAKSAMANA.Net, June 3, 2005 06:03 AM
14 Detained Over Tentena Bombings
Laksamana.Net - Police have detained at least four suspects and 10 other people for
questioning over the May 28 twin bomb blasts that killed 21 people at a Christian
market in Tentena, Central Sulawesi province.
Central Sulawesi Police chief Brigadier General Aryanto Sutadi on Thursday (2/6/05)
said seven of the detainees were being held in Poso city and the seven others at
police headquarters in the provincial capital Palu.
He said police were still hunting for another four people suspecting of playing key
roles in the two bomb attacks. One of the four is a man named Yani, who is the
alleged leader of seven of the detainees and has been accused of masterminding
recent attacks on predominantly Christian villages in neighboring West Sulawesi. Two
of the others have been identified by their initials as E.W. and A.T. The two were
reportedly seen at the market in the days leading up the bombings and had fled on a
motorcycle immediately after the blasts.
Ten of the detainees have been identified. They include Poso prison warden Hasman,
former local government officials Abdul Kadir Sidik (who was head of housing and
disaster relief in the Poso administration) and Ismet (who was an official with the Poso
Health Office and had been incorrectly identified as Elvis in some reports), former
Poso Social Affairs Office head Anwar Ali, murder/embezzlement suspects Andi
Makkasau and Ahmad Laparigi (both of whom are prominent public figures), and
murder suspects Jufri and Supratman. The two others, whose occupations were
unknown, are female suspect Tamri Firna and male suspect Wisnu.
So far, only Hasman, Ismet, Abdul Kadir Sidik and Makkasau have officially been
declared suspects. Police have said the other detainees could later be declared
suspects.
Reports said Hasman, Jufri, Supratman and Tamri Firna were arrested on Sunday
night in Tumora village in Poso Pesisir subdistrict, while driving in a Toyota Kijang
vehicle to Palu. The Jawa Pos daily reported that Tamri Firna is rumored to be a
relative of Hasman.
Police said Hasman was caught carrying a pistol and sharp weapons, while a residue
found on his clothing was identical to the chemicals used in the attacks.
He was initially charged with illegal possession of a firearm and releasing prisoners
without a court order. He and the other suspects are now being held under
anti-terrorism legislation.
Some reports said Abdul Kadir Sidik, Ismet, Anwar Ali, Andi Makkasau and Ahmad
Laparigi are on trial for the embezzlement of Rp2.3 billion ($242,000) in aid for the
resettlement of refugees affected by three years of sectarian conflict in Poso from
1999-2001. Other reports said they had already been convicted over the swindle, .
Hasman allegedly released Kadir Sidik and Ismet before the bombings. The two were
arrested in Ampana district on Monday while in an Isuzu Panther vehicle, after
witnesses reported seeing them in Tentena before the explosions. The car reportedly
contained traces of chemicals identical to those used in the bombs.
Ali, Makkasau and Laparigi were in their cells at the time of the bombings. They were
later taken from the prison for questioning.
Makkasau and Laparigi are also suspects in last October’s murder of Carminalis
Ndele, the Christian head of Pinedapa village in Poso Pesisir district. He was
reportedly murdered because he was a key witness in the case involving the
embezzled refugee funds and had refused to participate in the scam.
State news agency Antara reported that Hasman had released Jufri and Supratman,
who were being detained over the murder of a village head in South Bungku in
neighboring Morowali regency.
Chemicals
A search of Hasman’s residence at the Poso prison on Tuesday reportedly
uncovered materials for pipe bombs and chemicals identical to those used in the
market bombings.
National Police spokesman Aryanto Budihardjo said the chemicals – TNT and
chlorate – also matched powder found on Hasman’s clothing and in Kadir Sidik’s
car.
He said similar chemicals were found on the motorbike belonging to the suspects
E.W. and A.T., who are believed to have detonated the bombs. Police have received
information that the two might have fled to Central Java, he added.
Many Theories on Motive
Numerous theories have been put forward for the motive for Saturday’s bombings.
Police and Vice President Jusuf Kalla have said the attack could have been
perpetrated by the network of fugitive Malaysian terrorists Azahari Husin and Noordin
Mohammad Top, who are wanted for alleged involvement in a series of deadly
bombings in Indonesia.
But analysts doubt that Azahari and Noordin, who are members of regional terror
group Jemaah Islamiyah, would have gone after such a remote target where there
were no Westerners.
Government officials have suggested the bombings were the work of local Islamic
extremists seeking to reignite violence between Christians and Muslims.
Some analysts have speculated that “rogue members” of the security forces could
have masterminded the attack, either in an effort to justify the military’s presence in
the region or to discredit the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Several non-government organizations have said the attack might have been an effort
to divert public and police attention from the refugee aid corruption scandal and the
related murder of the Pinedapa village chief.
Kalla has strongly rejected that theory, saying it is “illogical” to link corruptors to the
bombings.
The possible link between the bombings and the corruption case was first mentioned
on Tuesday, when four local NGOs said they had been threatened for investigating the
missing funds.
The offices of two of the NGOs, the Poso Center for the Reconciliation of Conflicts and
the Poso Civil Society Empowerment Institute, were reportedly damaged by
explosions on April 28.
Representatives of three Jakarta-based NGOs on Thursday met with parliament
speaker Agung Laksono and suggested the bombings were the work of the corruption
suspects.
"The indication is that before the corruption case was exposed, there were almost no
bombings, mysterious shootings or other terrorism incidents there. But since the
case was strongly revealed, terrorism has not stopped there,” Iskandar Lamuga,
director of the Civil Society Empowerment Institute, was quoted as saying by
detikcom online news portal.
"Those being detained as suspects over the bombings are also being processed at
Poso District Court over the case of corruption and the case of the murdered village
head. It was in their interest to divert attention from the case by conducting terrorism
against the community,” he said.
The NGOs also expressed regret over Kalla’s stance that the bombings were
unrelated to the corruption case. They said he should not have made such a
statement until police had thoroughly investigated the incident.
They also called for Andi Asikin Suyuti, head of the Central Sulawesi People’s
Welfare Office and acting regent of Poso, to be investigated for corruption and
dismissed.
Josh Yunus Adi Candra, a member of the Indigenous Nature Conservation Foundation,
said corruption had cumulatively increased in Poso over the past four years from the
time that Kalla held the position of coordinating minister for people’s welfare.
State Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief Syamsir Siregar visited Poso on Thursday,
accompanied by Suyuti.
Meanwhile, police in Jakarta and other major cities have tightened security at
markets, transport terminals, hotels, malls and other potential terrorism targets.
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