Grenade explosion targets Blok M Plaza: Police
Grenade explosion targets Blok M Plaza: Police
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The grenade which exploded on Jl. Bulungan, South Jakarta and
claimed one life in the early hours of 2002 was, in fact, meant
to go off several meters away, amid hundreds of revelers as they
celebrated the New Year at the Plaza Blok M shopping mall, police
now believe.
Police officials declined speculate as to who might have been
behind the failed attack, which took place at 3:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Investigators said they were following leads, starting from
known associates of 21-year-old Hasballah, a suspect who was
killed while reportedly carrying the grenade.
City Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Anton Bachrul Alam told The
Jakarta Post that there was strong cause to believe that the
intent was to throw the grenade either "at the crowd around Plaza
Blok M, or the building itself."
"But the grenade exploded in the suspect's hand before he
could throw it," Anton added.
Police have also said they believe that the attackers set off
two firecrackers in an effort to conceal their involvement in the
failed attack.
It is also believed that Hasballah, who died of his wounds
several hours after the explosion, was assisted by another man,
identified as Tarmizi, who was able to flee the area.
Some 15 eyewitnesses have told police that they saw Tarmizi at
the scene of the crime.
Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Makbul Padmanagara said both
suspects were native of Acehnese who had been living in the
capital for several months.
Hasbullah was reportedly from Blang Cut, while Tarmizi came
from Sigli, in Aceh province.
Nonetheless, Makbul could not confirm whether the abortive
attack was linked to separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM).
"They are Acehnese, but it doesn't necessarily mean that they
are GAM members," Makbul said.
Makbul claimed that the grenade used resembled those that
exploded at the Slipi flyover in west Jakarta and the Mampang
flyover in South Jakarta in July.
Police forensics laboratory tests show that the hand grenade
was a South Korean-made, type K-75, locally known as Granat
Manggis containing high explosives RDX and trinitrotolune (TNT).