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Two suspects arrested in arson case that killed North Sumatra journalist
The police are pursuing another individual who allegedly ordered the two arrested suspects to burn down the house of a journalist and his family in Karo regency, North Sumatra. The journalist and his family died in the fire, opening the possibility that more suspects may be named in the case.
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This photo shows on July 4, 2024, the burnt house of 40-year-old journalist Rico Sempurna Pasaribu, who died in a fire with his wife, child and grandchild in Kabanjahe, North Sumatra. Indonesian police said on July 4 they are investigating a fire that killed a journalist and three of his relatives in North Sumatra last week amid suspicions of arson. Pressure mounted on police to investigate after a local journalist group claimed the incident may have been related to Pasaribu's stories on illegal gambling. (AFP/Risky Cahyadi)
T
he North Sumatra Police arrested two suspects and are pursuing another person allegedly involved in an arson case that killed a journalist and his family in Karo regency in the province.
The two apprehended suspects, identified by their initials R and Y, allegedly set fire on June 27 to the house of Sempurna Pasaribu, 47, a journalist for the police-owned Tribarata TV. The fire killed Sempurna, his wife, their 12-year-old son and 3-year-old grandchild. The suspects were arrested on Sunday.
The police are currently pursuing another suspect who allegedly ordered R and Y to burn Sempurna’s house, North Sumatra Police chief Comr. Gen. Agung Setya Effendi said. Investigators also probed several names allegedly connected to the case, with Agung saying that it would be possible for the police to name more suspects in the crime.
“We are gathering evidence before naming them as new suspects,” the police chief said during a press briefing on Monday.
While the police were still investigating whether R and Y were paid by the mastermind, Agung said the suspects’ actions were individual rather than part of a certain group. Agung was accompanied by commander of Bukit Barisan Military Command Maj. Gen. Mochamad Hasan and the command’s military police chief Col. Uncok A. Simanjuntak.
Previously, an independent fact-finding team formed by journalist associations, noted that events surrounding the incident were suspicious, alleging that Sempurna’s death could be related to his reporting of an illegal gambling incident in the regency that allegedly involved Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel.
Several witnesses also claimed that the fire was triggered by spilled gasoline at the victim’s house, where the family used to sell gasoline from a kiosk.
