Indonesian security forces recovered the body of New Zealand pilot Glen Malcolm Conning on Tuesday, following a deadly separatist attack in Papua. Conning, a pilot for PT Intan Angkasa Air Service, was shot by gunmen allegedly with the West Papua Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement, shortly after landing in Alama, a remote district in Central Papua’s Mimika regency.
The attackers, who released all six passengers including two health workers and two children, are suspected to be from Nduga district and led by Egianus Kogoya, according to Bayu Suseno, spokesperson of the Cartenz Peace Taskforce. Suseno described the group as highly dangerous and active around Timika, a town near the Grasberg mine.
Lt. Gen. Richard Tampubolon, Chief of the Joint Regional Command of Papua, reported that bad weather had delayed the initial search and evacuation operations. Conning’s body was found inside his helicopter and flown to a hospital in Timika for an autopsy.
“A preliminary medical examination showed gunshot wounds and slashes from sharp weapons on his body,” Tampubolon said, condemning the killing as inhumane.
The West Papua Liberation Army claimed responsibility, stating the area was a restricted zone for civilian aircraft. This incident underscores the ongoing security challenges in Papua, which has experienced a low-level insurgency since its contentious incorporation into Indonesia in 1969.
