Amrozi 'delighted' by Bali blast

By KATHY MARKS

SYDNEY - Indonesian police investigating the Bali terrorist attack have named four new suspects, and their prime suspect has declared himself "delighted" that the bombing was successful.

Amrozi, a 40-year-old Indonesian who confessed to a key role in the October 12 attack after being arrested in East Java last week, apologised to his family in a tape played at a press conference yesterday but did not express sympathy for the bomb victims.

In a bizarre spectacle, detectives invited reporters to watch through a window as he was questioned by the Indonesian police chief, General Da'I Bachtiar, at police headquarters.

At one point, a smiling Amrozi, wearing shorts and a black T-shirt with the word "detainee" on the front, turned and waved to the media.

General Bachtiar later played a tape on which Amrozi apologised to his family for causing them trouble and added: "Those involved were me and my younger brother, Ali Imron."

Police named Ali Imron and another brother, Ali Fauzi, as suspects, after finding weapons and explosives in East Java which they allege the pair hid on Amrozi's behalf.

Yesterday General Bachtiar said there were "many other" suspects and named four: Idris, Hudama, also known as Imam Samudra, and two men called Umar.

Nearly 200 people, mainly tourists, were killed when three bombs exploded at two nightclubs in the beach resort of Kuta.

General Bachtiar said Amrozi heard about the attack on the radio at 7am the following day. "He was delighted that his bomb had successfully exploded in Bali," he said.

Police say Amrozi, who was arrested in his home village of Tenggulun, has admitted to owning the van that exploded outside the Sari Club. He has also confessed to being a field commander for Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), the southeast Asian extremist movement linked with the al Qaeda terrorist network.

Security experts have speculated that the Bali blasts were masterminded by Riduan Isamuddin, also known as Hambali, JI's operations chief.

The state-run Antara news agency yesterday quoted Indonesia's intelligence chief, Hendropriyono, as saying that another of Amrozi's brothers, Mukhlas, had taken over from Hambali.

General Bachtiar said that, according to witnesses, Hambali left Malaysia for Pakistan after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.

"We received confirmation that Mukhlas was an important figure after we interviewed Amrozi," he said.

One of the newly named suspects, Imam Samudra, was already wanted in connection with a string of church bombings and is alleged to be a leading member of JI.

General Bachtiar said he and Amrozi planned the Bali blasts during meetings at a food stall and in a car in the city of Solo, central Java, in 2000. Afterwards, he said, the two men communicated via mobile telephone text messages.

Amrozi was given money - a mixture of US dollars, Singapore dollars, Malaysian ringgit and Indonesian rupiah - by another suspect, Idris. Six days before the bomb attack, Amrozi went to Bali and met Idris and another suspect, Umar. He stayed in three places on the island.

- INDEPENDENT

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