The Jakarta Police said on Thursday that a suspect in two explosions at Mall Alam Sutera was working alone and that his motive was to extort money from the mall'€™s management.

The police confirmed that the suspect, Leopard Wisnu Kumala, an IT expert aged, 29, was not linked to any terrorist network. The police arrested Leo in Serang, Banten, on Wednesday evening.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian said that Leo was the sole perpetrator responsible for the bomb explosions that occurred at the shopping center on July 9 and then again on Wednesday. Wednesday'€™s explosion had injured one man, police said. Tito added that Leo had committed the attacks for financial reasons.

'€œHe is not linked to any terrorist network. He is a lone wolf '€” a terrorist who works by himself,'€ Tito said in a press conference held at Jakarta Police headquarters. '€œHe used the bombs to extort money from the management at Mall Alam Sutera.'€

According to Tito, the suspect demanded Rp 350 million (US$24,000) from the management. However, the management only paid about Rp 750,000 to Leo'€™s account through the payment network Bitcoin.

Tito did not reveal any further details of the extortion scheme.

Tito explained that the police had encountered some difficulties in tracking Leo because they had initially suspected that the perpetrator belonged to a terrorist network.

On July 11, two days after the first bomb attack, Tito voiced the police'€™s suspicion that the incident was possibly related to the Islamic State (IS), which by that time had triggered terrorist atrocities in Tunisia, Kuwait and France with a fatwa (religious edict) for jihad issued during the holy month of Ramadhan.

On the same occasion, general crime directorate chief Sr. Comr. Krishna Murti said that the police had managed to track Leo since the first explosion in July. However, the police decided to employ a '€œsilent operation'€ because they did not want to spread fear and anxiety among the public.

Also on Thursday, Tito told reporters that Leo had learned to organize bombs using the highly explosive material acetone peroxide from the internet. He made five bombs and placed them in cigarette boxes.

The police chief explained that Leo had planted four bombs at different places inside Mall Alam Sutera from July to October to threaten management. However, two of them failed to explode and were found by authorities.

He added that the police had found the other bomb in Leo'€™s house after the suspect gave the necessary information to police hours after the second bomb attack took place on Wednesday.

Tito suggested that mall management tighten general security by placing more CCTV cameras in strategic places around the mall such as in aisle and corridors and at entrances.

'€œI advised mall management to learn from this case by providing more security, like CCTV cameras,'€ Tito said, adding that in the Mall Alam Sutera case, CCTV cameras had significantly helped the investigation.

Separately, Irwanto Rasad, director of Mall Alam Sutera, expressed his appreciation to the police in a written statement. He said that the management was relieved to learn that the police had arrested the suspect.

However, due to the ongoing investigation, he refused to comment further on the issue, and said nothing regarding the issue of possible sanctions from the Tangerang city administration.

Previously, Tangerang Mayor Arief Wismansyah said that his administration might impose sanctions on the management of Mall Alam Sutera because it had failed to provide its customers with a secure environment.

'€œWe are waiting for the results of the investigation and for a recommendation from the police. If the management does not obey the recommendation, we will take further measures against the management,'€ Arief said, adding that the city administration might also revoke the mall'€™s operating license.

October'€™s bomb attack on Mall Alam Sutera is the fourth minor bomb explosion to him Greater Jakarta this year.

On Feb. 23, a low-grade bomb rocked ITC Depok, a shopping mall next to City Hall. No casualties were reported.

On April 8, an explosion occurred in an empty field behind a police post in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, leaving four people injured.
_________________________________

To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News.

For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com

Popular

Trump gets his way on tariffs, but global trade system intact for now

Severe fuel shortage hits Jember following closure of vital road for renovation

Indonesian workers in Japan face growing stigma after viral incidents