Prisoners' plan to bomb prison and escape thwarted

JAKARTA (JP): The police have foiled the plans of five prisoners to build a homemade bomb inside the Tangerang Prison and use it to aid their escape.

Tangerang Police deputy chief Comr. Ricky Wakanno said on Wednesday that the five prisoners were allegedly building the bomb using material smuggled into prison, by the wife of one of the prisoners.

"They planned to detonate the explosive on April 20. With that diversion, they were hoping to escape prison," Ricky told The Jakarta Post.

The bomb equipment was found hidden inside their cell on Tuesday night.

Ricky identified the prisoners as embezzlement convict Sugiyanto, drug convict Sunardi and robbery convicts Deddy Susanto, Sigit Harianto and Muhammad Iqbal.

"It was Deddy Susanto's wife who gradually smuggled in the equipment to build the bomb with each visit she made to the prison. Family members of Sugianto also helped by smuggling in equipment."

Ricky added that jail wardens who allowed Deddy's wife and Sugianto's family members to enter the prison unchecked, would soon be detained for questioning.

"The wardens are partly responsible for this," he said.

He added that his detectives were already questioning Tangerang Prison chief warden Paulus Sugeng, and jail warden Ruslan.

"According to the prisoners, Deddy's wife had succeeded in smuggling in most of the bomb equipment, except for the explosive material itself ... which she was intending to smuggle in either this week or the next."

The confiscated bomb equipment included timers, batteries, some wiring, stove wicks, and bottles, which Ricky said, would have been assembled into Molotov cocktails.

Ricky explained that at 11 p.m. on Tuesday, he received information from Paulus Sugeng that some prison inmates of Block C2 -- which is now being secured by police officers -- were going to make a bomb.

"Paulus said that he got this information from some of the prison inmates," Ricky said.

"Sugianto was the one making the bomb ... he told us that this was his first experience.

"He was actually transferred from the Salemba Penitentiary into Tangerang Prison, because he had made precisely the same plan there, of blasting his way out of jail, during Christmas Eve last year."

Ricky added that jail wardens in penitentiaries across Greater Jakarta seemed to be losing control over prisoners, and were easily lured by money which rich prisoners provided wardens with, in exchange for drugs and other perks inside prison, or even freedom.

Last month, a prisoner was killed when hundreds of police were attempting to quell a riot that broke out in Cipinang Penitentiary in East Jakarta.

The government-sanctioned National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) was scheduled to carry out a nationwide inquiry into penitentiaries and detention centers, to uncover the roots of unrest in such institutions.

There are 372 correctional institutions and detention centers across provinces nationwide, but the number of prisoners usually exceed the capacity of the prison. (ylt)