Gun make could hold answer to mysterious gunfire
Gun make could hold answer to mysterious gunfire
JAKARTA (JP): Police are still trying to identify the type of gun used in the shots fired at a five-star hotel and a bank building.
City Police Chief Maj. Gen. Dibyo Widodo told reporters here yesterday that ballistics experts at the National Police Forensic Laboratory had not yet completed their examination of the three cartridges found.
The cartridges were found on Jl. Teluk Betung, several hundred meters from the two buildings, police sources said.
A senior officer, who requested anonymity, said that the cartridges were being studied to determine the type and caliber of the gun.
Forensic experts have already spent more than two days examining the cartridges. However, many believe the identity of the gun owner is preventing the police from disclosing any of their findings.
Col. M.A. Erwin of the forensics laboratory declined to comment, saying only that the lab facilities were some of the most sophisticated in Southeast Asia.
Earlier reports of a long-barrel rifle being used has led to speculation that Armed Forces personnel may have been involved. Dibyo had no comment.
The chief of the Armed Forces faction in the House of Representatives has called for a thorough investigation into the incident.
Attention
The incident deserves special attention for its "serious" implications, faction chief Maj. Gen. Suparman Achmad said.
The fact that "ABRI has a complete list of its rifles" should help police determine if the rifle is ABRI-issued, Suparman said. However, he added, the motive might be more difficult to ascertain.
The shots were fired at two separate rooms of a five-star hotel on Jl. Karet Pasar Baru Timur at around 6 a.m. Sunday.
Around the same time, an office on the 27th floor of the Bank Bumi Daya headquarters on Jl. Imam Bonjol was also fired on.
There were no fatalities reported in the shooting, which some say was meant to disrupt the Saturday wedding reception of movie star Ongky Alexander Harianto and corporate executive Paula Ayustina Saroinsong.
Paula, employed at a company run by Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, has an office on the 23rd floor of the bank headquarters.
Earlier, Ongky received heavy media coverage in connection with a land scam involving millions of rupiah. He was found not guilty. (bsr)