Ex-Indonesian general guilty in Tiger arms racket

A retired Indonesian Marine Corps general pleaded guilty in U.S. court Friday to money laundering and conspiring to provide material support to the LTTE, an Associated Press Report said.

Erick Wotulo, 59, conspired last year to export weapons and other military technology to the LTTE, according to the plea agreement. State-of-the-art firearms, machine guns and ammunition, surface-to-air missiles and night-vision goggles were to be used against Government forces.

The conspirators contacted an undercover business in Maryland about the sale of military weapons. Wotulo helped acquire and arrange the proposed delivery to the Tamil Tigers, the plea agreement said.

Wotulo was arrested in September in Guam, where he had traveled to meet other conspirators and undercover agents posing as arms merchants.

Wotulo faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for conspiracy to provide material support and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for money laundering at his sentencing, scheduled for May 25.