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Indonesian maid who worked in Hong Kong probed for links to Medan bombing
- Ika Puspitasari, who is serving jail time, worked for two decades in Hong Kong and Malaysia
- Investigators found she met the wife of the suspected bomber, but had no other involvement in the blast that injured six
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A domestic helper who once worked in Hong Kong has been investigated by police probing a suicide bombing in Medan, Indonesia.
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Ika Puspitasari, 38, who was convicted in 2017 of funding terror activities and planning attacks in several cities, had been visited in jail by the wife of man suspected of blowing himself up at the city’s police headquarters last week, according to Indonesian police.
However, investigators concluded Ika – who worked in Hong Kong from 2004 to 2016, and was in Malaysia from 1997 to 2002 – had no involvement in the Medan bombing, and that the meeting was a social visit in the name of Muslim “sisterhood”.
The alleged bomber, Rabbial Muslim Nasution, 24, is believed have pledged allegiance to Islamic State, said national police spokesman Dedi Prasetyo.
Investigations showed Rabbial’s wife, who is known by her initials “DA”, was asked to visit Ika in prison by someone in her social media network.
But a counterterrorism police source told This Week in Asia: “Ika is not involved in the Medan blast. The bomber’s wife’s visit to her is akin to visiting a fellow member of the Muslim sisterhood.”
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Indonesian helpers working overseas, especially in developed societies such as Hong Kong and Taiwan, have been targeted for recruitment by Isis as they are considered potential sources of “funds” due to their steady income.
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