ID :
11355
Thu, 07/03/2008 - 23:20
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https://oananews.org//node/11355
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NEWS FOCUS: RI TERROR SUSPECTS LINKED WITH SINGAPORE NETWORK
BY ANDI ABDUSSALAM
Jakarta, July 3 (ANTARA) - The suspected terrorists who were arrested by the Indonesian anti-terror police in Palembang, South Sumatra, on Tuesday and Wednesday were said to have links with a terrorist network in Singapore.
According to National Police Chief Spokesman Insp. Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira, the suspected terrorists had links particularly with the group of Mas Slamet Kastari (45) in Singapore and wanted top Malaysian terrorist Noordin M Top.
Noordin is the most wanted terror suspect in Indonesia after Dr Azhari, a Malaysian bomb expert associated with Jemaah Islamiyah, who was killed in a police raid in Indonesia in 2005.
Abubakar said the South Sumatra networks were known to have links with the network in Singapore after police arrested suspect HM (35) in Sekayu sub district, Musi Banyuasin district, South Sumatra on June 28, 2008.
Kastari, a Singapore national, and escaped from a jail on Whitley Street in Singapore some time ago. He was put in the Singapore jail in 2006 and had been there until he escaped, on charges of planning terror attacks. He planned an attack on government buildings, airport and foreign representative offices in Singapore in 2001.
He was also once detained in Indonesia in 2003 for an immigration law violation. After walking free in 2006, he was extradited to Singapore.
"The police arrested MH after they obtained a tipoff from Singapore that he was involved in terrorist activities in that country," Abubakar said.
After obtaining information from MH, police arrested nine other suspects. Police until Thursday still refused to name the suspects, but made public their initials. They were among others AT alias M alias K alias I (35), SG alias S alias R (22), AM alias Z (26), W alias Y alias R (35), AG alias G (36), HP alias H (25), AS alias AH alias UG (42), SA alias AB and AMT alias AT.
Abubakar said in the investigation of the South Sumatra networks, police discovered links with members of Noordin M Top networks who were arrested in Semarang and Wonosobo (Central Java) in 2006.
In Central Java several years ago, police arrested a number of suspected terrorists who were believed to have hidden Noordin M Top.
MH, the police chief spokesman said, admitted he had assembled bombs and trained other suspects how to assemble them. AT was believed to have assembled bombs, planned to explode 'Bedudel' Cafe in Bukittinggi, West Sumatra in 2005 and tortured clergyman Joshua in Bandung in 2005.
"He was found to be in possession of firearms of S and W colt types with six bullets," Abubakar said. SG and AM also had assembled bombs. Besides possessing home-made bombs, suspects W, AG and HP meanwhile had planned to explode the Bedudel cafe and maltreated Jushoa. AS and SA were also charged with helping MH to go into hiding.
Pieces of evidence seized from the South Sumatra network included four bombs, one colt revolver, 10 bullets of 28 mm caliber and 18 computers.
The exhibits were found and confiscated on July 1, 2008 in a house on Jl Papera, Palembang, South Sumatra. On July 2, the following day, police confiscated other evidence, among others, 10 home-made bombs, 9.1 kg of black powder and eight detonators.
Police also confiscated potassium nitrate, potassium chlorate, a mixture of carbon and potassium nitrate, home-made pistols and various types of cable rollers.
But police are not yet able to reveal their next targets. Abubakar said that police up to now were still studying the locations of targets where the terror suspects had planned to carry out bomb attacks.
In their efforts to uncover further evidence and suspects, police in South Sumatra are still detaining one suspect there for interrogation.
"In order to trace other suspects and evidence, police are still keeping one suspect in Palembang while others have been put in the Kelapa Dua Mobile Brigade detention house in Depok, a satellite town south of Jakarta ," Abubakar said.
The nine terror suspects arrived at the Mobile Brigade (Brimob) Headquarters' detention center at 11 am Thursday under heavy guard.
With their heads covered in hoods, the nine men arrived in a bus guarded by members of the police's anti-terror detachment riding in three other vehicles - one in front of, and two behind, the prisoners' bus.
After going through a checking-in procedure, the nine suspects were led to a cell located in the back part of a block housing the Mobile Brigade Headquarters' internal affairs unit.
None of the police officers at the Mobile Brigade Headquarters or the prisoners' guards was prepared to make any comments to reporters covering the happening. They only said they did not know anything about the prisoners.
Jakarta, July 3 (ANTARA) - The suspected terrorists who were arrested by the Indonesian anti-terror police in Palembang, South Sumatra, on Tuesday and Wednesday were said to have links with a terrorist network in Singapore.
According to National Police Chief Spokesman Insp. Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira, the suspected terrorists had links particularly with the group of Mas Slamet Kastari (45) in Singapore and wanted top Malaysian terrorist Noordin M Top.
Noordin is the most wanted terror suspect in Indonesia after Dr Azhari, a Malaysian bomb expert associated with Jemaah Islamiyah, who was killed in a police raid in Indonesia in 2005.
Abubakar said the South Sumatra networks were known to have links with the network in Singapore after police arrested suspect HM (35) in Sekayu sub district, Musi Banyuasin district, South Sumatra on June 28, 2008.
Kastari, a Singapore national, and escaped from a jail on Whitley Street in Singapore some time ago. He was put in the Singapore jail in 2006 and had been there until he escaped, on charges of planning terror attacks. He planned an attack on government buildings, airport and foreign representative offices in Singapore in 2001.
He was also once detained in Indonesia in 2003 for an immigration law violation. After walking free in 2006, he was extradited to Singapore.
"The police arrested MH after they obtained a tipoff from Singapore that he was involved in terrorist activities in that country," Abubakar said.
After obtaining information from MH, police arrested nine other suspects. Police until Thursday still refused to name the suspects, but made public their initials. They were among others AT alias M alias K alias I (35), SG alias S alias R (22), AM alias Z (26), W alias Y alias R (35), AG alias G (36), HP alias H (25), AS alias AH alias UG (42), SA alias AB and AMT alias AT.
Abubakar said in the investigation of the South Sumatra networks, police discovered links with members of Noordin M Top networks who were arrested in Semarang and Wonosobo (Central Java) in 2006.
In Central Java several years ago, police arrested a number of suspected terrorists who were believed to have hidden Noordin M Top.
MH, the police chief spokesman said, admitted he had assembled bombs and trained other suspects how to assemble them. AT was believed to have assembled bombs, planned to explode 'Bedudel' Cafe in Bukittinggi, West Sumatra in 2005 and tortured clergyman Joshua in Bandung in 2005.
"He was found to be in possession of firearms of S and W colt types with six bullets," Abubakar said. SG and AM also had assembled bombs. Besides possessing home-made bombs, suspects W, AG and HP meanwhile had planned to explode the Bedudel cafe and maltreated Jushoa. AS and SA were also charged with helping MH to go into hiding.
Pieces of evidence seized from the South Sumatra network included four bombs, one colt revolver, 10 bullets of 28 mm caliber and 18 computers.
The exhibits were found and confiscated on July 1, 2008 in a house on Jl Papera, Palembang, South Sumatra. On July 2, the following day, police confiscated other evidence, among others, 10 home-made bombs, 9.1 kg of black powder and eight detonators.
Police also confiscated potassium nitrate, potassium chlorate, a mixture of carbon and potassium nitrate, home-made pistols and various types of cable rollers.
But police are not yet able to reveal their next targets. Abubakar said that police up to now were still studying the locations of targets where the terror suspects had planned to carry out bomb attacks.
In their efforts to uncover further evidence and suspects, police in South Sumatra are still detaining one suspect there for interrogation.
"In order to trace other suspects and evidence, police are still keeping one suspect in Palembang while others have been put in the Kelapa Dua Mobile Brigade detention house in Depok, a satellite town south of Jakarta ," Abubakar said.
The nine terror suspects arrived at the Mobile Brigade (Brimob) Headquarters' detention center at 11 am Thursday under heavy guard.
With their heads covered in hoods, the nine men arrived in a bus guarded by members of the police's anti-terror detachment riding in three other vehicles - one in front of, and two behind, the prisoners' bus.
After going through a checking-in procedure, the nine suspects were led to a cell located in the back part of a block housing the Mobile Brigade Headquarters' internal affairs unit.
None of the police officers at the Mobile Brigade Headquarters or the prisoners' guards was prepared to make any comments to reporters covering the happening. They only said they did not know anything about the prisoners.