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'The explosion was very strong': Witness of suicide bombing at Medan Police HQ
“I screamed, ‘It’s a bomb!’, then I ran,” the eyewitness said.
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Medan Police officers secure their headquarters in Medan, North Sumatra, after an apparent suicide bombing on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2019. (AFP/Atar)
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n eyewitness of an apparent suicide bombing at the Medan Police headquarters in Medan, North Sumatra, has said that the explosion on Wednesday morning, which injured six people, felt “very strong”.
Lila Mayasari, a resident of Sidorejo district in Medan, said she was at the police’s operational office to obtain a police certificate of good conduct when she saw the suspected perpetrator walk into the yard.
“After the police’s morning roll call, the perpetrator blew himself up. A number of police officers were injured and everyone was panicking because the explosion was very strong,” Lila told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
The 34-year-old said she immediately fled the scene after the incident. “I screamed, ‘It’s a bomb!’, then I ran,” she said, adding that she had also called for other people to run away.
The suicide bombing occurred at 8:45 a.m. on Wednesday, after a morning roll call.
A police officer at the headquarters, Comr. Abdul Muthalib, was one of four police officers injured by the explosion. He suffered wounds on his face and hand.
One non-permanent staff member and one civilian also sustained injuries as result of the blast, according to the police.
Prior to the incident, Abdul reportedly tried to chase after the perpetrator when the latter, wearing the uniform of an online motorcycle taxi driver, rushed into the yard after the morning roll call.
The injured victims were taken to Bhayangkara Police Hospital in Medan for treatment.
National Police spokesperson Brig. Gen. Dedi Prasetyo previously said an investigation into the incident was under way to determine whether the bomb contained low or high explosives as well as to identify the attacker through a fingerprint analysis. (gis)
