Fresh blast injures a farmer in Cakung
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
While the city police continue their investigation into the Monday morning bomb blast at a building near the National Police Headquarters, another explosion occurred in the capital on Friday.
A cardboard box containing explosives was found by a farmer in an empty field in Penggilingan Baru, Cakung district, East Jakarta. When the farmer attempted to open the box it exploded, seriously injuring the man.
The package, which was found near a pond in a field behind the PIK handicrafts and home industry market in Cakung, exploded at about 10 a.m.
The farmer, identified as Abdul Latief, 38, a local resident, sustained serious injuries to his stomach and head.
Two passersby who witnessed the incident, Laila and Ramli, said Latief was walking to his nearby farm when he discovered the package on the banks of a pond.
Latief attempted to open the cardboard box with his staff when the explosion occurred, throwing the farmer to the ground.
The injured man was taken to the nearby Pondok Kopi Islamic Hospital, where he received 17 stitches to close his wounds.
Police deployed the bomb squad from Kelapa Dua, Depok, to the site and roped off the area to keep back hundreds of curious residents.
A dozen members of the bomb squad combed over the blast site, while two bomb container trucks were seen parked close to the scene.
After searching the area for more than two hours, the bomb squad declared the area clear.
Police said the explosion was likely caused by a large firecracker in the cardboard box.
"From the report of the bomb squad, we can conclude that the bomb was a low-explosive type. It is possibly it was caused by a large firecracker disposed of by people nervous about getting caught in our recent crackdown on firecrackers in Jakarta," East Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Budi Winarso said.
Police operation Ketupat Lilin took place from the fasting month of Ramadhan last year up to the New Year's celebrations this year, to crack down on the trade and use of firecrackers in the capital.
Budi, however, did not explain fragments found at the scene, including pieces of plastic and insulation tape, which were part of the debris from the package.
The explosion left a 50-centimeter hole in the bank of the pond and flattened some nearby bushes.
The explosion drew so much attention because it followed on the heels of the bombing at Wisma Bhayangkari, which is located in the National Police Headquarters complex in South Jakarta, on Monday. That bomb blast injured a janitor who was nearby.
Police remain in the dark about the possible motive and suspects behind Monday's bombing.
Budi said police were questioning three witnesses about Friday's blast -- Laila, Ramli and Andre, who said he had seen the package on Thursday.
According to Latief's older sister, Wagita, 50, her brother had lived in Penggilingan Baru for 10 years, working as a farmer to support his family in Cirebon, West Java.
"He has three children. Every month he returns home. His wife just had their third son last Ramadhan," Wagita said.