INTERPOL issues global alert for suspected terror leader following escape from Singapore jail
28 February 2008
Orange notice for Mas Selamat bin Kastari
Mas Selamat bin Kastari escaped from the Whitley Road Detention Centre on Wednesday 27 February where he was being held following his deportation from Indonesia to Singapore in February 2006.
Following a request from Singapore, INTERPOL issued the Orange Notice - which includes Kastari’s photograph and fingerprints, essential elements to help law enforcement officers in their search and eventual verification of his identity when located and arrested – to each of its 186 National Central Bureaus (NCBs).
“Singapore is clearly doing all that it can on a national level to locate this fugitive and through issuing an Orange Notice, INTERPOL and all of its member countries can support these efforts on an international scale,” said Executive Director of Police Services Jean-Michel Louboutin.
The Orange Notice was originally created to warn police, public entities and other international organizations of potential threats related to disguised weapons, explosives and other dangerous materials; however it can also be issued by INTERPOL’s General Secretariat in Lyon, France for any act or event which poses a risk to the safety and security of citizens around the world.
Interpol has issued an "Orange Notice" for the leader of southeast Asian Jemaah Islamiyah, Mas Selamat bin Kastari, who escaped from a detention center Wednesday.

Singapore Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng told his Parliament that a "security lapse" is what led to Mas Selamat's escape. While waiting to visit his family, Mas Selamat escaped from the Internal Security Department's Whitley Road detention facility shortly after 4 PM local time after being granted permission to use the washroom. The escape led to Mr. Wong apologizing for the incident and the beginning of an island-wide manhunt for Selamat.

"When it comes to escapes, the first hours are crucial," said Jean-Michel Louboutin, Interpol's executive director of police services. "The state of Singapore has put into operation everything that's needed to be done. It's a small country, so it's easy to cross and leave."

Selamat, a 47-year-old former bus mechanic and a father of 5, was once accused of plotting to hijack a plane and crash it into Singapore's international airport. He is "someone who presents a potential physical danger to others, but also a potential danger by organizing future bombings," Louboutin said.

Mas Selamat bin Kastari, a Singaporean national of Indonesian birth and extraction, stands 158 cm (about 5 feet 2 1/4 inches) tall and walks with a limp in his left leg.

After the "Orange Notice" was released, Mas Selamat's picture and fingerprints were released to Interpol's 186 member countries. He remains at large.