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AGO finds no foul play in building blaze
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n internal Attorney General’s Office (AGO) evaluation has concluded that the August fire that ravaged the office’s main building was caused by human error, rather than premeditated criminal action.
Junior Attorney General for General Crimes Fadil Zumhana said there was no indication that arson was behind the fire that devastated the main building of the AGO complex in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.
"No [foul play] was detected, [the fire] was caused by negligence," Fadil said after a case screening with National Police detectives on Wednesday.
Authorities reached the conclusion after examining the evidence, he said without elaborating on the details of the findings.
"The fire was caused by a mistake. It was not intentionally set," Fadil added, as quoted by tempo.co.
The fire in question broke out on the sixth floor of the AGO's main building at 6:15 p.m. on Aug. 22.
The blaze engulfed the entire structure, including the intelligence office and the office of Pinangki Sirna Malasari, a prosecutor on trial for allegedly assisting graft convict Djoko Soegiarto Tjandra during his time as a fugitive.
It took some 10 hours and 65 firetrucks to extinguish the fire.
The National Police's Criminal Investigation Department concluded on Sept.17 that the fire was caused by an open flame rather than an electrical short circuit, leading investigators to believe that there may have been criminal factors behind the fire.
The police questioned more than 130 witnesses in the investigation, including janitors, office clerks and other AGO employees.
Although investigators did not find any signs of foul play, Fadil said those found responsible for the fire could be charged under Article 188 of the Criminal Code on negligence that cause fires, explosions or floods, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. (nal)
