Firecrackers vendor arrested

JAKARTA (JP): A man has been arrested in Rawa Bunga, East Jakarta, for selling about 480 kilograms of firecrackers, police said over the weekend.

City police spokesman Lt. Col. E. Aritonang said the goods were confiscated on Thursday afternoon and would be used as evidence against the vendor, Azizan, 36.

"It is prohibited by law to sell any explosive materials without an official permit from the related institutions. This person obviously did not have a permit."

He said that Azizan would be charged under Article 1 of the 1951 Emergency Law No. 12 which stipulates the death penalty, life in prison or a maximum of 20 years in jail.

Azizan sold the firecracker on Jl. Rawa Bunga.

"I sold them because many people, young and old, are looking for the items," Aritonang quoted Azizan as saying.

The suspect often bought the items from a manufacturer in Indramayu, West Java, he said. (cst)