Police accused of wrongful arrests in church attack

Police accused of wrongful arrests in church attack

Moh. Darlis, Palu

Central Sulawesi Police have been accused of arresting the wrong
suspects in the latest attack on a church in the provincial
capital, Palu, which killed a clergywoman.

Police officers reportedly shot Bambang, 27, in the leg and
arrested him during a raid on a house in Moko village, North Lore
district, at 5 p.m. on Thursday.

He is being detained as a suspect over the July 18 killing of
Rev. Susianty Tinulele, 29, by masked gunmen who stormed the
Effata Presbyterian church in Palu.

The police also named Bambang's boss, Kamal, 35, as a suspect
in the same incident but did not detain him after he was
questioned on Thursday night.

Kamal, accompanied by his wife, Cahyati, and five witnesses,
went to the Central Sulawesi office of the Legal Development and
Human Rights Institute (LPSHAM) on Friday to seek legal
assistance.

Speaking to journalists at the LPSHAM, Kamal said he
considered Bambang a relative, as the latter had been working for
the former's PT Cipta Mori Utama for years.

According to Kamal, the police searched his house on Jl. Maleo
No. 90, South Palu, on Thursday, but did not find firearms or
explosives as evidence.

Meanwhile, witness Anwar, who works with Bambang at PT Cipta
Mori Utama, said the detained suspect and other employees were
sitting together at a house on Jl. Tombolotutu, Palu, when the
church attack took place.

"I wonder why he (Bambang) has been accused of involvement in
the incident, while I was with him at the time?" Anwar said.

Central Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Taufik Ridha declined
to comment on Friday on the wrongful arrest accusation. He
appeared to avoid journalists after performing Friday prayers at
his office.

Nor did his spokesman, Adj. Sr. Comr. Victor Batara, make any
comment.

LPSHAM director Syamsu Alam Agus said his organization would
lodge a protest with the provincial police for what he said was
an "emotional" approach in the hunt for suspects in the death of
Susianty.

The police were "inaccurate" in making a decision, when they
declared Bambang and Kamal suspects in the attack, he said.

"Because the police were emotional in using their firearms too
readily, it's hardly surprising if local people are rather
reluctant to give information on renewed attacks," Syamsu added.

Kamal admitted that his three children were afraid of going to
school after their father had been named a suspect in the killing
of the clergywoman.

"My family is restless because I have been accused of
committing the murder," he said.

The July 18 incident was the latest in a string of attacks by
unidentified people on Christian targets in Central Sulawesi.

Officials say the attackers want to provoke a new round of
Muslim-Christian battles after as many as 2,000 people died in
Poso regency between 2000 and 2001.