Wanted man in Poso attacks captured
The Jakarta Post, Palu, Central Sulawesi
Police said on Sunday they had arrested a man allegedly involved in a series of bombings in the troubled town of Poso, Central Sulawesi province.
The suspect, identified as Ahmad Ali -- a resident of Central Sulawesi, was arrested on Thursday at a rented house in Yogyakarta, where his wife is studying for a master's degree.
Ali was taken aboard a Lion Air plane amid a tight security on Saturday to be flown to the Central Sulawesi capital of Palu for further questioning.
He is being detained along with three other suspects including Farid Podungge and Wagiman alias Papa Siti.
Outgoing Central Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Aryanto Sutadi said Ali was believed to have played a key role in the bombing of the offices of two non-governmental organizations in Poso on April 28.
There were no injuries in the blasts at the offices of the Poso Conflict Resolution Center (PRKP) and the Civilian People's Empowerment Institute (LPMS).
Aryanto said that Ali masterminded the attacks as he helped finance them and provided information on the targets of the bombing.
The suspect admitted that the two NGO offices were attacked for pursuing reconcilatory efforts in conflict-torn Poso and for their active role in uncovering corruption cases linked to humanitarian funds for victims of the conflict.
LPMS director Iskandar Lamuka had earlier confirmed that Ali had once threatened his office, ordering the organization to stop anticorruption activities in Poso.
Poso and its neighboring districts have been the scene of intermittent fighting between Christians and Muslims that has left more than 1,000 people dead since 2000.
The government brokered a peace deal in the area 2001 but sporadic shootings and bombings have continued.
Aryanto said the police were also investigating Ali's role in the bomb attack on a traditional market in Tentena district near Poso on May 28, which killed 21 people.
"We will be developing the probe to that direction. But for sure, Ahmad Ali is very much connected to this case," he said.
Before his arrest, Ali had been convicted by a court in Palu of involvement in a drug abuse case and for threatening the local branch of Bank Mandiri.
In the drug case, he received a four months' sentence in addition to the six months he had to serve over the Mandiri case.
However, before being sent ever to prison, Ali had left for Yogyakarta to visit his wife and children.
The suspect is a businessman and contractor who has dealt with major projects in Central Sulawesi. He is also known as a low- profile activist from a political party, with "broad connections".
When the sectarian fighting broke out in Poso in 2000, Ali played a role in establishing a jihad group in the town.