Man caught carrying explosive materials

DENPASAR, Bali: A Philippine national named Hernandus Oscar Mercado, 48, is being detained after he was discovered transporting 20.5 kilograms of chemical substances believed to be ingredients for making explosives.

Mercado was apprehended at Ngurah Rai International Airport on Monday morning while on his way to Dili, East Timor.

Airport officers scanning luggage through an X-ray machine found suspicious items among his belongings.

"We first thought that it was drugs but later it turned out to be three separate packages containing 10-kilograms of sulphur, 10 kilograms of carbon and 0.5 kilograms of alum. If those substances were mixed in the right proportions, it could create heat and explode," a police source said.

Bali Police chief Brig. Gen. I Wayan Ardjana confirmed the arrest, but said police were still probing the case.

"We're still in the process of analyzing the substances," he said. (zen)