Matori's attack remains mystery

Matori's attack remains mystery

JAKARTA (JP): The city police have failed to uncover the
motive or the mastermind behind the March 5 attempted murder of
National Awakening Party Chairman Matori Abdul Djalil at his
South Jakarta residence.

In an interview with The Jakarta Post on Tuesday, Jakarta
Police Chief Maj. Gen. Nurfaizi said a key factor in the
investigation was the apprehension of the two suspects, who are
still at large.

"You have to understand that what we have now is all dead
evidence. We have to arrest Assadullah and Ichwan (the two
fugitives) to explain the evidence," Nurfaizi said.

Matori, also Deputy Speaker of the People's Consultative
Assembly, suffered severe injuries to his head and hand after
being attacked by a man, later identified as Sarmo, alias Tarmo,
who managed to escape from the scene with an accomplice on a
motorcycle.

According to police, the two abandoned the motorcycle after
being repeatedly struck by stones thrown by pursuers. They then
stopped an ojek (motorcycle taxi) and forced the driver to give
them a ride.

At the nearby Jagakarsa area, the two asked the ojek driver to
pull over. After stopping the two fled in different directions.
Thinking that the two refused to pay the fare, onlookers then
mobbed Tarmo to death. His accomplice Achmad Tazul Arifin, alias
Sabar, was arrested a few days later.

Based on Sabar's testimony, police named Assadullah and Ichwan
as the other suspects in the case. Detectives were then assigned
to track Assadullah's home in Cibitung, Bekasi, and Ichwan's
residence in Petamburan. Central Jakarta.

At the two addresses, officers found 83 detonators, one hand
grenade, seven maps of West Java and Jakarta, four passports
bearing the names of four different men, notebooks on warfare,
notes on how to make a bomb, designs of several rifles and guns,
and notes on how to construct one.

One of the maps depicts the South Jakarta subdistrict of
Ciganjur, which is also the neighborhood of President Abdurrahman
Wahid's private residence.

Although the Ciganjur map provides no other information, the
Jakarta Police worry that the suspects might also have the
President on their list of targets.

"The targets may have included the President as you pointed
out. When it comes to politics, a president of any country can
become a target. (The former U.S.) President (John F.) Kennedy is
one example," Nurfaizi said.

A police officer close to the investigation said earlier that
detectives were having difficulty making a case from the
available evidence.

"The more we analyze, the more baffling the case becomes," he
said.

According to Nurfaizi, there was a good possibility that the
men had received their warfare training abroad.

"I feel 60 percent certain these men were trained in Moro
(Philippines). Moro hardliners are known for their sadistic
ways," he said, giving no further explanation.

Some pages in the textbook on rifle and gun design, for
instance, depicts different kinds of grenade launching rifles,
including a Polish-made rifle. (ylt)