PAPUAN
SEPARATIST CHARGED WITH THE MURDERS OF TWO AMERICANS,
ATTEMPTED MURDERS OF OTHERS DURING 2002 AMBUSH IN
INDONESIA
WASHINGTON,
D.C. - Attorney General John Ashcroft, Assistant
Attorney General Christopher A. Wray of the Criminal
Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Wainstein of
the District of Columbia, and FBI Director Robert
Mueller announced that a joint U.S.-Indonesian investigation
has led to the indictment of Indonesian citizen
Anthonius Wamang in connection with the deadly attack
in August 2002 on a group of American schoolteachers
returning from a picnic near Tembagapura, located
in the remote Papua Province of Indonesia.
The
indictment, returned under seal by a federal grand
jury in Washington, D.C., on June 16, 2004 and unsealed
today, charges Wamang, 32, with two counts of murder
of U.S. citizens outside the United States, eight
counts of attempted murder of U.S. citizens outside
the United States, seven counts of causing serious
bodily injury to U.S. citizens outside the United
States, and two firearms charges. Three of the charges
in the indictment are punishable by the death penalty.
"The
U.S. government is committed to tracking down and
prosecuting terrorists who prey on innocent Americans
in Indonesia and around the world," said Attorney
General Ashcroft. "Terrorists will find that they
cannot hide from U.S. justice - whether in the world's
largest cities or in the most remote jungles of
Asia."
"The
brutal terrorist attack charged in this indictment
was an unprovoked ambush of an innocent group of
Americans who were in Indonesia to teach school,"
said Assistant Attorney General Wray. "The Department
of Justice will work tirelessly to see that those
responsible for such terrorist acts are brought
to justice."
"This
case is an example of outstanding investigative
work and the dogged determination of FBI Agents
and prosecutors to ensure that those who attack
Americans abroad are brought to justice. I look
forward to working cooperatively with the authorities
in Indonesia as we pursue our mutual interest in
prosecuting this defendant," said U.S. Attorney
Wainstein.
"This
investigative effort illustrates the importance
of international cooperation to combat terrorism
and what can be accomplished when countries partner
in this effort," said FBI Director Mueller. "The
cooperation extended by the Indonesian government
enabled the FBI to work in the remotest areas of
Indonesia and identify the party responsible for
this terrible crime."
The
charges in the indictment stem from an attack that
occurred on Aug. 31, 2002, when 10 schoolteachers
and a 6-year-old child were ambushed as they were
returning from a picnic to their residences in Tembagapura,
Papua Province, Indonesia. While traveling on the
road in two vehicles, the victims were ambushed
by heavy gunfire. The attack resulted in the death
of two American citizens, Ricky Lynn Spier and Leon
Edwin "Ted" Burgon, and one Indonesian citizen,
Bambang Riwanto. Seven of the eight surviving American
victims were seriously wounded.
The
adult victims named in the indictment were contract
employees of Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Mine,
Inc. ("Freeport"), which operates the world's largest
gold and copper mine, in Papua Province. As alleged
in the indictment, at the time they were attacked,
the victims were traveling on the Timika-Tembagapura
Road, also known as the Freeport Road, which was
built by Freeport and runs approximately 75 miles
from the sea, through the town of Timika and north
to Tembagapura, where the mine is located in the
mountains at approximately 14,000 feet above sea
level.
Papua
Province is also known as Irian Jaya Province. As
alleged in the indictment, the "Free Papua Movement,"
also known as "OPM," is an organization devoted
to creating a Papuan state independent from the
Republic of Indonesia. The "National Freedom Force,"
also known as the "TPN," is the military arm of
the OPM. The
indictment alleges that, at the time of the attack,
Wamang was an operational commander in the OPM/TPN.
The
Indonesian National Police and the FBI are conducting
this investigation in close cooperation, and are
attempting to identify additional participants in
the murders.
This
case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney
Gregg A. Maisel and DOJ Trial Attorney T.J. Reardon,
III, of the Counterterrorism Section of the Criminal
Division. The case has been investigated jointly
by the Indonesian National Police and the Washington
Field Office of the FBI, with the support of the
Indonesian government and the United States Embassy
in Jakarta. U.S. Attorney's Office employee Karen
Evans is providing assistance to the prosecutors.
An
indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant
violated a criminal law. All defendants are presumed
innocent until and unless proven guilty.