Bosnia bomb probe finds weapons, Islamist link seen

SARAJEVO (Reuters) - Bosnian police have uncovered a large cache of weapons and detained a new suspect in the course of their inquiry into a June bomb attack that killed one policeman and injured six others, the prosecutor's office said.

The attack, outside a police station in the town of Bugojno, was one of the most serious security incidents in the Balkan country since an ethnic war ended in 1995.

Shortly after the blast, police arrested the suspected mastermind and his helper -- both believed to be followers of the radical Sunni Muslim Wahhabi sect.

In a statement on Monday, the prosecutor's office gave an update on the state of the investigation.

"A major quantity of weapons, military equipment and explosives found in the wider area of Bugojno, is believed to have been designated for criminal or terrorist acts," it said.

A new suspect was being questioned by police and would be handed over to the state prosecutor, the statement added.

The prosecutor's office delined to provide details on when the weapons were discovered and the additional arrest made, but local media reported that it happened last week.

The Wahhabi sect has taken root in Bosnia under the influence of Islamists from abroad, some of whom stayed on after fighting alongside Bosnian Muslims during the 1992-95 war.

Police have stepped up efforts to curtail the small but vocal Wahhabi groups. In February they raided a community in the northern village of Gornja Maoca and arrested several men accused of trying to destabilise the fragile country.

The fight against militancy and organised crime is a requirement for visa-free travel for Bosnians in the European Union and for closer ties with the bloc.

(Reporting by Maja Zuvela; Editing by Adam Tanner and Noah Barkin)