Australian police find Indonesian students' car

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 02/25/2009 3:13 PM  |  National

Families confirmed on Wednesday that a car found by police in the Australian state of Victoria was one that had been used by two Indonesian students who disappeared during a bushfire disaster in the town of Marysville earlier this month.

Abelian Yodha, a top official of the Indonesian Consulate in Melbourne, told Antara news agency on Wednesday that the consulate and students’ families had identified the car as one used by the students when they had left to visit the area.

“There were two dead bodies found in the car. DNA tests will be done to confirm the dead bodies' identities,” Abelian said.

Abelian said police had found the car in a hilly area 4 kilometers from Marysville, but that they had not reported when they found the car.

“The consulate and families have agreed to wait for the DNA tests results,” Abelian said.

The students, Dean Lesmana and Rudi were reported to have traveled to Marysville on Feb. 7 , when the area became engulfed in a bushfire.

Hundreds of fires swept through a large area of Victoria when record temperatures of around 47 C and 100 kph winds and forests dried by years of drought combined into infernos.

The confirmed death toll from the fires rose to 210 earlier this week and was expected to climb higher as more remains are identified. (dre)
 

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