Saturday, 18 June 2011

Indonesia: Bomb explodes in minimarket, one injured

A small bomb exploded at a minimarket in Lubuk Linggau, South Sumatra, on Saturday, injuring the minimarket owner, a police officer said.

South Sumatra Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Sabaruddin Ginting said the bomb was one of the two sent in a package. The other bomb was defused by police.



“The explosion occurred at 9:10 a.m.,” Sabaruddin said, adding that the victim, identified as Hindra Sumarjono, was rushed to Siti Aisyah Hospital in Lubuk Linggau.

The National Police immediately deployed members of its Densus 88 counterterrorism squad to Lubuk Linggau on Saturday to investigate the incident, which it believes may have been carried out by terrorists.

“This was an act of terror. The perpetrators are terrorists, but we don’t know which terrorist network they are affiliated with,” National Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar was quoted as saying in Jakarta by news portal kompas.com.

Boy said the package was similar to the mail bombs sent to several people in Jakarta. However, he denied this latest incident involved members of an alleged terrorist ring led by Pepi Fernando — the main suspect, still at large, behind the Jakarta mail bombs.

Boy added that a security guard at the minimarket received the package from an unidentified man at 5:12 p.m. on Friday. “However, because the owner was not present, the package was kept at the information counter,” Boy explained.

The security guard later handed the package to Hindra on Saturday morning, Boy said. The package, which measured 15x20 centimeters, exploded when Hindra opened it.

Lubuk Linggau Mayor Riduan Effendi called on city residents to remain calm.

He also urged businesses, hotels and malls in the city to increase their security measures. “If necessary, metal detectors or bomb detection equipment should be used, not only at malls and hotels, but also at the airport and bus terminals,” he said.

The Jakarta Post, Palembang | Sun, 06/19/2011 8:00 AM

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