Police headquarters bombing suspect arrested

Police headquarters bombing suspect arrested

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

The police have arrested a former police officer, identified
as Adj. Comr. Anang Sumpeno, for bombing Wisma Bhayangkari, a
building located in the compound of the National Police
Headquarters in South Jakarta, city police spokesman Sr. Comr.
Prasetyo said on Saturday.

Prasetyo said Anang, a former member of the National Police
bomb squad, was arrested in his rented room in Bukit Duri, South
Jakarta, early on Saturday morning.

"So far, it appears that the suspect carried out the bombing
alone, but we are still investigating," Prasetyo told The Jakarta
Post.

He said Anang was believed to have carried out the crime due
to bitterness. He was involved in a drug case in 2000 while
studying at the Police Science Institute (PTIK). As a result he
could not continue his studies and had no position at the police.
The suspect then deserted from the police.

Anang constructed a low-explosive bomb and put it in a black
bag. The bomb, placed near a flower pot in the front yard of
Wisma Bhayangkari, exploded on Feb. 3, destroying the front part
of the building.

The bomb squad arrived too late at the scene, failing to
defuse the bomb, although a police officer had reported it long
before the explosion. No fatalities were reported after the
explosion had occurred.

The bombing was seen by some analysts as mocking the police
amid their perceived recent achievement in arresting the suspects
of the Bali bombing.

"It (the HQ bombing) had a political motive," National Police
chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar soon stated after the incident.