Female reverend shot dead in Palu

Irvan NR, Palu

An unknown assailant shot dead a female reverend on Sunday night during a sermon at Effata Church in the Central Sulawesi capital of Palu, some four hours away from the restive regency of Poso.

Susianti Tinulele, the 29-year-old reverend, was shot dead while delivering a sermon. The unknown assailant showered bullets on dozens of churchgoers, seriously injuring four of them.

Adj. Sr. Comr. Victor Batara, the Central Sulawesi Police's spokesman, said that the shooting began at 7 p.m, when a man suddenly entered the church on Jl. Banteng here and shot at Susianti. Another version said that there were two assailants, one stayed outside the church to hold a security guard, while the other entered the church and showered bullets on the reverend and her congregation.

The man quickly fled the scene after the incident, leaving the people in panic.

Sunday's shooting followed a bombing and two separate murders in Poso regency on Friday and Saturday.

Susianti was the second reverend shot dead in Central Sulawesi in the past four months. Another reverend, Freddy Wuisan, was shot dead in Membuke, Poso regency in March this year. Two weeks after Freddy's murder, two unknown assailants showered bullets on churchgoers attending an Easter sermon at the Tabernacle Church in the religiously divided regency of Poso. Seven people were injured.