The hunt for the masterminds of the Australian embassy bombing in Jakarta appears to have stalled after Indonesian police released several suspects because of lack of evidence. Police yesterday released four people they had arrested in the coastal fishing port of Pelabuhan Ratu and the nearby mountain city of Sukabumi following the September 9 suicide bombing, which killed 10 people as well as the bomber. Police spokesman Inspector General Paiman said there was not enough evidence to prove the men were involved in the embassy blast or the suicide attack on the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta last year, despite at least two of them having trained as militants. "Both of them were proven to have participated in military-style training at Gunung Peti, near Pelabuhan Ratu," Paiman said. "They were trained by Rois."Rois, known also as Iwan Darmawan, is currently on the run from police and is suspected of being the field coordinator of the embassy attack and righthand man for Malaysian bombing mastermind Azahari Husin. Azahari, Rois and top Jemaah Islamiah terror recruiter Noordin Top are being hunted by teams of crack US-trained anti-terror police, but have so far avoided arrest despite several near misses by authorities. Paiman said the men freed yesterday had undergone training in May and June this year as Azahari was seeking to build up another fresh militant network in Indonesia following the wave of arrests after the 2002 Bali bombings "To nearby villagers they said that the training was meant to expel thugs who frequently disturb the peace and extort money" from local gold fossickers, he said.