Doubt cast on JI link in Sumatra<\/p>\n
Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan<\/p>\n
The National Police, praised for their fight against terrorism,
\nhave sparked confusion over a recent claim that Jamaah Islamiyah
\nwas operating in Sumatra.<\/p>\n
Only hours after the National Police announced on Saturday the
\ncapture of 10 suspected members of the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI)
\nterror group allegedly operating in North Sumatra and Riau as
\nthieves, North Sumatra Police chief of detectives Sr. Comr.
\nSatria Hari Prasetya denied there were any links between the
\nsuspected criminals and the regional terror group.<\/p>\n
Satria also said that only eight people were arrested. The men
\nare accused of staging last month's robbery of the Medan branch
\nof Bank Lippo.<\/p>\n
\"They have no link to the regional terrorist group Jamaah
\nIslamiyah (JI). This group of robbers is professional and
\ncertainly well-organized.<\/p>\n
\"We are conducting further investigations, but based on their
\nstatements, they have no connection to JI,\" Satria told a media
\nconference held to respond to the National Police's claim.<\/p>\n
The National Police director of the chief of detectives, Comr.
\nGen. Erwin Mappaseng, said the Medan Police had arrested 10 JI
\nmembers implicated in the Christmas Eve bombing in 2000 as well
\nas last year's Bali blasts.<\/p>\n
North Sumatra Police identified the eight suspects as Fa alias
\nAcin, 21, Ra alias Tono, 30, Sa alias Aan, 30, Ta alias Aryo, 24,
\nRam, 30 and MU, 30, -- all residents of Medan -- Pu alias Soni,
\n23, a resident of Pekanbaru, and In alias Togar, 33, from
\nBengkulu.<\/p>\n
Satria said he believed that the group was expanding its
\nnetwork to Medan, Bengkulu and Pekanbaru, the capital cities of
\nthree of Sumatra's provinces.<\/p>\n
In Jakarta, National Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Zainuri Lubis
\nsaid that the men were suspected members of JI, the militant
\nIslamic group blamed for last year's Bali bombings, which left
\n202 people dead, mostly foreign tourists.<\/p>\n
\"It was one of the largest and most violent undertakings that
\nis suspected to have been carried out by this group,\" Zainuri
\nsaid. \"We are concerned that it happened in Medan, which is near
\nthe neighboring countries of Singapore and Malaysia.\"<\/p>\n
\"We suspect that these people are still active and gathering
\nfunds locally, perhaps from outside sources,\" he told AP on
\nSunday, adding that JI leader Hambali had ordered the men to
\ncarry out the crimes to collect funds for their activities.<\/p>\n
The police seized three handguns, 91 rounds of ammunition,
\nfour motorbikes, hundreds of thousands of rupiah, a bank passbook
\nand vehicle ownership documents.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/doubt-cast-on-ji-link-in-sumatra-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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