Police look for heavier charges against Sadler and McCulloch

Agencies, Jakarta

Aceh Police said on Monday that they would broaden their investigation of a British academic and an American nurse in their custody to include more serious offenses than simple visa violations.

"We will widen the investigation to include heavier charges," Aceh Police spokesman Taufik Sutiyono told AFP.

The police also denied reports on Monday that one of the women had become ill.

"The suspects are in good condition. The investigation is proceeding without any problems, which means nobody is sick," Taufik told Reuters.

British lecturer Lesley McCulloch and American nurse Joy Lee Sadler have been in police custody since Sept. 11, when security forces stopped them and their translator in the South Aceh District. Officers had allegedly found them with material linking them to GAM, which has been fighting since 1976 for a separate state on the tip of Sumatra.

Several journalists in Aceh said they had received a mobile phone message from Briton McCulloch late on Sunday telling them that her American colleague had become ill.

"Tonight, Joy sick. Heart-doc come with heart med," the message read.

But the women's lawyer, Rufriadi, also said they were in good health and denied that there had been a medical emergency.

"This morning I had some calls asking if one of the women had had a heart attack. It's not true, and they're both healthy," said Rufriadi from the Aceh Legal Aid Institute.

Taufik said McCulloch and Sadler possessed video footage showing activities of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and other documents related to the rebels.

"We want to know for what purpose these items were to be used," he said.

Until recently, McCulloch was a university lecturer in Tasmania, Australia, and a frequent contributor on the Aceh dispute to Asian newspapers.

Police accused the women of abusing their tourist visas, a charge they deny.

Rufriadi said on Saturday that they had replied in writing to about 30 questions from the police. The officers will review the statements and decide whether they need to investigate further, he said.

Police have said they were not considering deporting the women and want to bring them to court in the province.

An estimated 10,000 people have died since GAM began its struggle for independence in 1976. Rights activists say close to 1,000 people died this year in the civil conflict between GAM and government forces.