Police arrest followers of religious sect<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A total of 27 followers of what the authorities
\ncall a deviant religious sect (aliran sesat) have been detained
\nat the Bekasi military district headquarters on charges of
\nplanning to establish an Indonesian Islamic State (NII).<\/p>\n
According to informed sources the 27 were captured by the
\nBekasi police Ambush Squad on Tuesday evening at a house they
\nused for their clandestine meetings in Sarang village in
\nJatimulya subdistrict, Bekasi Timur.<\/p>\n
Along with the 27 sectarians, the police confiscated pamphlets
\nand books containing oaths as NII members and a flag.<\/p>\n
The flag is similar to the one found in the mysterious package
\naddressed to the U.S. ambassador on Tuesday. It has a white
\nflower in the middle and is surrounded by red-and-white stripes.<\/p>\n
The sources said that the group planned to replace the
\nexisting Pancasila philosophy with Islamic rules.<\/p>\n
According to the sources, who asked not to be identified, the
\npolice missed dozens of group members who scattered when the
\nauthorities arrived on the scene.<\/p>\n
After hours of interrogation at the Bekasi police precinct,
\nall of the suspects were sent to the military district
\nheadquarters for further investigation.<\/p>\n
The police have not yet announced the leader of the group but
\nsome newspapers reported yesterday that the leader, identified as
\nRus, 26, has not been arrested yet.<\/p>\n
When contacted by The Jakarta Post yesterday, City Military
\nCommand spokesman Lt. Col. Didi Supandi confirmed reports over
\nthe detention of the sect members and said: \"We're still
\nexamining the case.\"<\/p>\n
Meanwhile Lt. Col. A. Latief Rabar, a spokesman for the City
\nPolice, which oversees Bekasi, said the group was politically
\nmotivated.<\/p>\n
\"It's not a pure crime, therefore the (Bekasi) police precinct
\ntransferred the handling of the case to the military district
\nheadquarters,\" Rabar told reporters yesterday.<\/p>\n
The house, whose owner has not yet been identified, was rented
\nby the group for five months.<\/p>\n
During preliminary questioning at the police station, the 27
\nsuspects admitted that they were discussing a picnic to
\nPangandaran, a famous tourist resort in West Java.<\/p>\n
The 27 suspects, based on the results of the preliminary
\ninvestigation on their domiciles and identities, come from North
\nand East Jakarta, Tangerang and Bekasi. (bsr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/police-arrest-followers-of-religious-sect-1447893297",
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