SOUTH SULAWESI: MAKASSAR DRUG BUST UNCOVERS EXPLOSIVES,

UNCLAS SURABAYA 000035 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, INR/EAP, INL, S/CT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ASEC PGOV PREL ID SUBJECT: SOUTH SULAWESI: MAKASSAR DRUG BUST UNCOVERS EXPLOSIVES, WEAPON AND AMMUNITION This message is sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Makassar authorities are still investigating the discovery of explosives, an AR-15 rifle and many rounds of ammunition at a house belonging to a Mr. Sabri at a housing complex in a Makassar suburb according to media reports and Congen Surabaya contacts. Makassar police -- acting on a tip from a narcotics informant -- thought they would seize narcotics, but discovered TNT, a rifle and live ammunition instead. The purpose of the cache and Sabri's intentions remain unclear. Sabri has told authorities that the ammunition is related to his late father's membership in a gun club. Congen Surabaya sources have speculated that the TNT could have been obtained from one of the many mining sites in Indonesia. ¶2. (SBU) Fajar Daily Chief Editor, Sukriansyah, who has spoken directly with authorities investigating the case, told Congen Surabaya that South Sulawesi Police are still questioning Sabri about the origin of the explosives and AR-15 rifle. What police thought would be a routine drug seizure turned into a much more dangerous proposition, said Sukriansyah. During questioning following his arrest for marijuana possession on Tuesday March 11, a man named Zulkarnain told police he obtained the drugs from Sabri. Police set out to raid what they thought was a cache of drugs in Sabri's home the same day. Instead of drugs, the March 11 raid uncovered what press reports described as: "one Air Shooter rifle AR 15 A2, nine TNT < high explosives, 35 SME cartridges, 44, 5.56 mm, cartridges [Note: used for the AR-15 rifle, End note] an empty case for a mortar shell, 11 empty cartridge casings, four live 7.62 mm cartridges and one rubber bullet, all intended for an AK-47 type rifle." ¶3. (SBU) Chief of South Sulawesi Police, Inspector General Sisno Adiwinoto told local media that the police and Detachment 88 are investigating the case. South Sulawesi Police are not publicly speculating on any links between Sabri and terrorist groups and have released information that would suggest other sources for the cache. Police have disclosed that Sabri said all explosives, the weapon and ammunition belonged to his late father Saleh Ibrahim, and were simply uncovered when the house was renovated in 2007. Sabri told authorities that his late father was a member of "Perbakin" or (Persatuan Menembak Indonesia) the Indonesian Shooting Association. Congen Surabaya asked a Makassar contact familiar with the case why a member of a shooting club would possess TNT. The contact speculated that many members of Perbakin are Indonesian military members and police officers with access to weapons unavailable to the general public. This might be the case with these weapons and Sabri's father might have obtained them through these channels. MCCLELLAND