Indonesian police have arrested four suspects in connection with the September bombing of Australia's Jakarta embassy, but said a top bombmaker may have eluded arrest despite being stopped by traffic officers.
Police Chief General Da'i Bachtiar confirmed media reports that one of the detained men had said that Azahari Husin, one of Asia's most wanted men and accused of orchestrating the bombing, had been stopped several times by traffic police for violations and gave money to officers who failed to recognise him and let him go.
"Whether it is true or not, we don't know. But, if that is true, it gives us cause for introspection. You can check, the traffic police in Jakarta from now will all have the picture of Azahari and Noordin Top in their pockets," he said.
Police say they believe the September 9th car bomb that killed 10 people outside the Australian embassy was the work of British-educated Malaysian engineer Azahari and his countryman Noordin Mohamed Top, both wanted in connection with previous bombings linked to Southeast Asian militant network Jemaah Islamiah.
Azahari was thought to have been near the embassy when the bomb exploded, General Bachtiar said but did not specify the dates when he may have been stopped by traffic police.
Authorities say Azahari is the chief bombmaker for Jemaah Islamiah. He is also accused of building the bombs used in last year's attack on the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarata that killed 12 people, and the 2002 Bali nightclub blasts that killed 202, many of them foreign tourists.
Police today identified the four arrested men as Rois, Hassan, Apuy and Ansori. "Three of them have been under arrest since November 5th," General Bachtiar told a news conference, adding that the men had been on a wanted list with rewards of 500 million rupiah ($55,450) offered for each.