Two people likely came within inches of certain death at an office tower in Indonesia’s House of Representatives (DPR) complex in Jakarta yesterday when, according to police, two shots were accidentally fired at the building from a nearby shooting range.
According to reports, the bullets were fired from the shooting range — some 400 yards away from the tower — and hit the offices of legislators Bambang Heri Purnama and Wenny Warouw. The former was away at the time of the shooting, but a photo circulated shortly after the shooting showed a bullet hole going through the loose back of one of his employees’ hijab, narrowly missing her.
The veracity of the photo was confirmed by House Speaker Bambang Soesatyo, who held a press conference with the National Police yesterday evening regarding the shooting.
“Just a little bit closer, and it could’ve hit her head. Thankfully she’s safe,” Bambang told reporters, as quoted by BBC Indonesia.
Bambang added that Wenny Warouw’s office was actually shot at first, some 15 minutes before Bambang Heri’s office was hit. Wenny, who was in his office at the time of the shooting, was also extremely close to getting hit by the bullet.
“On the 16th floor, if Pak Wenny Warouw stood up, he could’ve been hit,” he said.
Speculation of attempted political assassinations was rife on social media following the shooting, but it was quashed as Bambang Heri (Golkar) and Wenny (Gerindra) are members of opposing political parties.
Instead, through its initial investigation, the National Police seem to be leaning towards the conclusion that the shooting was accidental and that the bullets that were fired strayed from the shooting range.
“The bullets were 9 mm caliber, with a substantial firing range. We’ll look into it further,” National Police Spokesperson Inspector General Setyo Wasisto said at the press conference.
Setyo added that the police have identified a person of interest in this accidental shooting, and that person may face as-of-yet unspecified criminal charges, despite the supposed lack of deliberate intent to shoot at the DPR.
“The culprit of the incident, a member of Perbakin (Indonesian Shooting and Hunting Association) in South Tangerang, has been found and we will take legal action,” he said.
Indonesia has strict gun control and firearm-related crimes are relatively rare in the country.
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