Police Delay Questioning of Student Bomb Maker in Padang Due to Trauma
Police have postponed questioning of the student with the initials R (17), who is suspected of detonating a homemade bomb on the grounds of Madrasah Aliyah Negeri (MAN) 3 Padang in West Sumatra.
“Questioning has not yet been carried out because we are still waiting for the rehabilitation and recovery process for the perpetrator,” said the Head of the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Padang City Police, Police Commissioner M Yasin, in Padang on Tuesday, 21 July 2026.
The perpetrator, who still holds the status of a child as he is 17 years old, is believed to be suffering psychological shock following the incident. Moreover, he added, the perpetrator resorted to detonating a bomb he assembled himself out of anger at having been a victim of bullying.
Given his condition, the perpetrator is deemed not yet fit to be questioned; forcing the process would affect the quality of the testimony given.
Yasin said the perpetrator is currently being handled by a joint team providing social rehabilitation, psychological rehabilitation, and social reintegration.
The joint team comprises several municipal departments or regional apparatus organisations (OPD) under the auspices of the Padang City Government.
He said the perpetrator’s recovery is scheduled to run until 28 July 2026; once R’s condition permits, questioning will proceed.
During the rehabilitation process, R is being housed in a safe house provided by the government, while supervision is carried out by the Padang City Police.
Yasin explained that the homemade bomb case is still being handled by the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Padang City Police, which has questioned a number of witnesses.
Police processing so far has revealed that R taught himself how to make an explosive device from the internet over approximately four months.
As for the raw materials and tools required, R sourced them from online shops and assembled the device by himself.
He carried out the assembly secretly, without the knowledge of his parents or other family members, and then stored it.
The perpetrator’s motive for detonating the homemade bomb in his own schoolyard on Tuesday, 14 July 2026, was anger at being a victim of bullying.
As previously reported, Detachment 88, the National Police counter-terrorism unit, uncovered the initial facts behind the explosion that occurred at Madrasah Aliyah Negeri (MAN) 3 Koto Tangah, Padang, West Sumatra, on Tuesday, 14 July 2026.