More shooting occurs near Freeport mine

More shooting occurred near PT Freeport Indonesia?s copper and gold mine in Papua but no death or injuries were reported, Kompas reported on Saturday

Nurhabri, spokesman for the local police, said that unknown gunmen opened fired on Friday on a convoy of trucks at Mile 49 area carrying Freeport?s logistics from portside warehouse to another warehouse at Mile 68.

He said that the police had stepped up searches for the unknown gunmen by sending 60 more police officers from Jakarta.

Security control had been also tightened especially on the main roads linking Timika, the provincial of Mimika regency to Tembagapura, where Freeport?s offices and mining facilities were located.

The shootings began Saturday last week when an Australian Drew Grant, 29, who worked for the firm, was shot dead as he traveled in a car with four others on a road between Tembagapura and Timika.

A security guard and a policeman were killed on Sunday morning and Monday during an armed clash between the police and unknown gunmen.

More shootings occurred since then but no deaths and injuries were reported. (*)