Vegas shot dead within E. Timor's territory: Police<\/p>\n
Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara<\/p>\n
East Nusa Tenggara Police chief Edward Aritonang said on
\nWednesday former militiaman Vegas Bibilitu was shot dead by East
\nTimor police within the neighboring country's territory.<\/p>\n
\"After an investigated at the scene, the shooting incident
\ntook place not within a neutral zone but inside Timor Leste's
\nterritory,\" he said, referring to Indonesia's former province
\nEast Timor.<\/p>\n
Former pro-Jakarta militia leaders and other pro-integration
\nEast Timorese, currently living in East Nusa Tenggara, have
\ncondemned Friday's killing of Vegas at Turiskain village, Raihat
\nsubdistrict, Belu regency.<\/p>\n
\"As fellow East Timorese citizens, the shooting incident was
\nextremely savage because it took place within a neutral zone,\"
\nFlorencio Mario Viera, spokesman for the Association of Pro-
\nIndonesia East Timorese People (Untas), claimed on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\"Pro-integration East Timorese feel shocked over the loss of
\none of the former pro-integration strugglers,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Aritonang said NTT Police would not intervene in the
\ninvestigation into the incident, despite the fact the deceased
\nwas a former East Timorese militiaman who became an Indonesian
\ncitizen.<\/p>\n
\"We ask the Timor Leste police to look into the case because
\nit took place within their territory,\" he told journalists in
\nKupang, the capital city of East Nusa Tenggara.<\/p>\n
Kupang Wirasakti military chief Col. Moeswarno Moesanif said
\non Monday that Vegas was shot near the Balibaca River, which
\nfalls within the Tactical Coordination Zone.<\/p>\n
A preliminary investigation showed that Vegas was shot in the
\nchest while trying to sneak into East Timor across the river,
\ncarrying arrows, he added.<\/p>\n
Aritonang said Vegas was killed because he had fired arrows at
\nEast Timorese police officers on patrol.<\/p>\n
\"The victim was warned from entering East Timor's territory up
\nto 100 meters away from the border, but he responded by firing
\narrows at the East Timor police officers,\" he was quoted by
\nAntara as saying.<\/p>\n
But Aritonang did not say whether the shooting was justifiable
\nor not.<\/p>\n
He said Vegas' body had been brought to the East Timor capital
\nDili for an autopsy before it was handed over to his family in
\nTuriskain on Monday.<\/p>\n
Moesanif accused Vegas of being involved in several cases of
\nsmuggling basic commodities into East Timor.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Moesanif said Vegas protected illegal
\ntransactions on the border area.<\/p>\n
\"We ask the Timor Leste government to soon put in order all
\nblack markets in the border area between the two countries to
\nminimize border conflicts,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Belu authorities temporarily closed Turiskain traditional
\nmarket, some two kilometers from the scene, to prevent possible
\nrevenge attacks by former pro-integration East Timorese.<\/p>\n
Vegas was a cofounder of the Halilintar militia group based in
\nBobonaro regency when East Timor was still part of Indonesia
\nuntil it voted for independence in 1999.<\/p>\n
He was also known to have once served as a member of the
\nIndonesian Military (TNI) in East Timor.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/vegas-shot-dead-within-e-timors-territory-police-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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