Explosives are sometimes used to stun fish so they can be easily caught.
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Bali police official Hendra Suhartiyono said authorities were looking into whether the material was on its way to the eastern island of Sulawesi, a region known for militant violence. It was headed for Selayar, an island off the southern coast of Sulawesi.
The director of the national police’s special economic crimes department dismissed any relation between the fertilizer – which can be used in explosives – and terror, saying initial evidence suggested the involvement of an worldwide syndicate involved in money laundering. But it has been decimated this year by the killing of its leader, the capture of its No. 2 figure and the deaths of many of its fighters in shootouts with security forces.
The authorities had earlier launched a crackdown on Santoso’s group, the East Indonesia Mujahideen (EIM) which has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State militants in Syria.
Initially, Santoso had 45 members in his group but the number dwindled to 14 after numerous clashes with security forces.
Police in Bali have confiscated an estimated 30 tonnes of ammonium nitrate found on a boat that arrived from Malaysia.
“They confessed that the boat was rented to be shipped to Sulawesi”. They thought the material in the sacks was fertilizer.
“We are not even sure if the fertiliser and ship are from Malaysia.do not jump on the assumption but we have contacted the Indonesian authorities to get further details”.
Indonesia saw its first militant attack in several years in January in which four people were killed.
Last month, the authorities tightened security in Bali after reports of a suspected militant plot on the island.
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The ammonium nitrate is what was used in the bomb built during the 2002 Bali nightclub bombs which killed 202 people including 88 Australians.
