Jakarta, Indonesia - Police in Bogor have identified three suspects in last week’s torching of homes and a mosque belonging to members of the Ahmadiyah sect, but have not yet arrested any of them.
The attack on the evening of Oct. 1 saw a mob of hundreds ransack and burn down houses, schools and a mosque in Cisalada village, home to 600 followers of the minority sect, which is deemed deviant by many mainstream Muslims.
Since then, police have arrested an Ahmadiyah member for allegedly stabbing one of the attackers, a 15-year-old boy, during the incident.
On Friday, Adj. Comr. Zulkarnaen Harahap, the Bogor Police’s chief of detectives, said three of the alleged attackers — identified only as RM, DM and AB — had been named suspects in the case, but would not yet be taken into custody.
“We’re not detaining them because they’ve been vouched for by community leaders and their families. But they will have to report in regularly,” he said, adding that the trio would be charged with assault, vandalism and arson.
Zulkarnaen said the suspects had been questioned by police on Friday afternoon at the Ciampea subdistrict police station.
“During the questioning, all three suspects were cooperative,” he said. “Two of them claimed they didn’t do anything, so we’re going to try to strengthen the evidence that shows they were involved in the incident.”