Authorities in Indonesia continue to try to identify the suicide bombers that attacked two luxury hotels in Jakarta on Friday, while focus turns to a fugitive terrorist suspect as the mastermind behind the deadly event.
Investigators hope that items they recovered from one of the hotels, included handwritten notes, a cell phone and an unexploded bomb encased in a laptop computer, will help them zero in on the bombers' identities.
The items were recovered from room 1808 of the J.W. Marriott hotel, where it seems the bombers prepared for the attacks.
A police investigator told the Associated Press that a receptionist at the hotel has told them that a man who checked into the room identified himself as "Nurdin." He did not use a credit card; instead he handed over a $1,000 cash deposit.
Meanwhile, authorities say the attacks, which killed eight people and wounded more than 50 others, including two Canadians, may be the work of Noordin Top, a Malaysian fugitive who leads a breakaway faction of militant group Jemaah Islamiyah.
"Considering the target, the location and content of the bombs, it was clearly the work of Noordin," the police investigator said. The investigator would not give his name because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Nasir Abbas, a former member of Jemaah Islamiyah who is now a police informant, said he was "200 per cent sure this was (Noordin's) work."
While Noordin is not an official suspect, many believe Jemaah Islamiyah or an allied group is behind the attacks.
The group has been linked to other terrorist attacks, including a 2003 bombing at the Marriott that killed 12 people.
The attacks, which also hit the Ritz-Carlton, broke a nearly four-year break in terrorist bombings in Indonesia. The last major attack was a triple suicide bombing on the island of Bali that left 20 people dead.
Friday's attacks called into question the efficacy of increased security measures at Jakarta hotels, including metal detectors at the entrances.
The Marriott was hosting a meeting of leading foreign executives of top companies in Indonesia, organized by the consultancy firm CastleAsia.
So far, authorities have identified five of the dead: two from Australia and one each from New Zealand, Singapore and Indonesia.
Stephen Smith, the Australian Foreign Minister, said Saturday that one of the dead Australians is Trade Commission officer Craig Senger.
"The hearts of our nation go out to those families," he said, adding that a third Australian at the scene "has not made contact with anyone since ... and we fear the worst."
Among the wounded were 17 foreigners who hailed from, among others countries, the United States, India, Italy, Norway and Britain.
Two Canadians were also injured: Edward Thiessen, 51, and Andrew Cobham.
Six of the injured were treated for burns and shrapnel wounds in Singapore, according to International SOS.
The blasts, which occurred Friday at about 7:45 a.m. local time, blew out windows and sent debris and glass raining onto the street below.
