SINGAPORE : A massive police operation is underway in Singapore after the leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah network here, Mas Selamat Kastari, escaped from detention at 4.05pm on Wednesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
A statement from the Home Affairs Ministry says Mas Selamat walks with a limp and is presently at large.
He is not known to be armed and is one of Singapore’s most wanted men.
Extensive police resources have been deployed to track him down after he escaped from the Whitley Road Detention Centre.
Anyone with information about him can contact the police at 999.
Mas Selamat was arrested by the Indonesian police on Bintan island in January 2006.
He was picked up then for using a fake identity card.
Based on investigations then, Indonesia’s elite anti—terror police discovered he was the leader of the Singapore Jemaah Islamiyah network, a terrorist organisation.
They then deported the man to Singapore in 2006.
The 45—year—old father of four was also said to be involved in JI’s plans to mount attacks against foreign and local establishments here.
These included the US Embassy and American Club, the Defence Ministry headquarters at Bukit Gombak and the Education Ministry building at North Buona Vista Drive.
Mas Selamat fled Singapore in December 2001 following an Internal Security Department operation against the terrorist organisation.
The militant leader had been on the run after Singapore authorities discovered plans to crash seven truck filled with bombs at various locations around the island.
Investigations also revealed that he was the mastermind behind a plan to hijack an airplane and crash it into Changi airport.
When he was last arrested in Indonesia, officers found literature on bomb making on the man.
Mas Selamat’s deportation to Singapore two years ago was seen as a significant development in the close network of cooperation amongst intelligence officers in the region to share information on terror suspects and to defeat the terror threat.
The islandwide manhunt has fanned out to areas in Beauty World in Upper Bukit Timah and Goldhill Avenue near Barker Road.
Officers are also knocking on homes asking residents if they have seen the escapee.
Police have also formed a formidable blockade around Malcolm Park, near the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School. — CNA/ch
How did a top wanted man managed to escape ? Thats the question I wanna know the answer of, so does many concerned Singaporeans and foreigners alike.
Mr Wong Kan Seng, our Home Affairs Minister can only say a simple "I am Sorry" with regards to this "security lapse". Mas Selamat, head of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist network here, gave his guards the slip while he was being taken to the toilet at the Whitley Detention Centre, which is near SCGS.
Surfing around the web, was quite fruitful.
TODAY's checks suggested that many Singaporeans were more curious about the escape itself.
As Mr K C Cheriyan, director of a childcare centre at Goldhill Avenue and a former military man, said: "How do you escape from such a facility? How is it possible?"
Other questions that have cropped up: Was Mas Selamat acting alone? Why was he not restrained with handcuffs or electronic tags? Shouldn't there have been fail-safe measures in the first place? Would his escape lead to greater security threats here?
As a current military man, I understand the importance of security. At the same time, I do understand what it means when it is too late for apologies.
The security screwed up big time this time around, and I feel it is too late for sorry(s).
This is a big dent in the people's trust in the nation's security forces.
The escape of Mas Selamat can end in disastrous results, and hopefully, things will not turn out that way.
Disappointing.......
Leave a comment