"We`re still investigating."Timika, Papua (ANTARA News) - Timika District Military Commander Lt Col Inf Christian Tehuteru has suspected that the Mimika district town of Timika was a gateway for the distribution trade of firearms and ammunition.
"Seeing the mode of operation developing lately, it is clear that Timika is a gateway for several specific groups who have been smuggling illegal goods, such as firearms and ammunition, because they have been caught several times during firearms raids," remarked Tehuteru in Timika on Wednesday.
With three different cases of weapons ownership and hundreds of ammunition rounds found in Timika in the span of the last five months, Tehuteru hopes that the community will remain vigilant and prepared.
This is especially important because Mimika district is spread over such a wide region, with many gateways to several isolated villages in the coastal and inland areas that have not been found by TNI and the police so far.
According to Tehuteru, the Timika police are still investigating the case wherein two people smuggled in several ammunition rounds into Timika through the Gorong- gorong terminal on Sunday, May 20.
The police hope to find the place from where the suspects acquired the ammunition and to which group they were trying to sell it.
"Until now, we have no knowledge about whether the goods were obtained outside of Timika or from an insider, involving army and police personnel. We`re still investigating. But there are so many different gateways into Timika, and most of them are still uncovered," he explained.
The numerous instances of arms and ammunition dealings discovered in Timika in the last few months have become the chief topic of conversation among the regional intelligence community (Kominda) as well as several regional leaders and officials.
The latest such incident occurred at Gorong-gorong on Sunday, May 20, when the police stopped an ammunition smuggling operation and seized more than 100 active rounds that were being taken to Banti village in Tembagapura district.
They found hundreds of ammunitions rounds inside a bag that was being carried by a 12-year-old child, identified by the initials AW.
The ammunition carried by AW consisted of 88 rounds of bullets for 5.56 millimetre calibre rifles and 37 rounds of bullets for 4.5 millimetre calibre rifles.
As soon as the police made this seizure, they immediately notified the security guard on duty at PT Freeport.
Not long after that, the security guard and Timika`s team of police resort arrived at Gorong-gorong terminal.
During interrogation, AW admitted that he was involved in this act by his father, SW (50).
Following this confession, the police succeeded in capturing SW inside a public transport vehicle on the T junction of A. Yani Road, heading towards the Gorong- gorong terminal.
In addition to SW, the police caught two more individuals, identified by the initials SM and NM, who were in possession of sharp weapons. These three were taken straight to the resort police office of Timika for further interrogation.
(Uu.AH/INE/O001)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2012
