Community Organisation Members Beat Man to Death in North Sumatra in Case of Mistaken Identity

Police have arrested six members of a community organisation (ormas) who assaulted a man named Jaka Malau (24) to death at Taman Bunga in Pematangsiantar City, North Sumatra. Ironically, police stated that Jaka Malau was a victim of mistaken identity by the organisation members.

Pematangsiantar Police Criminal Investigation Unit Head AKP Sandi Riz Akbar said the fatal attack, which targeted the wrong person, occurred on 28 May. The victim received medical treatment at a hospital but died a day later.

From preliminary investigations, police found that the motive for the assault was a dispute over payment for a tattoo. “The motive for this case was a disagreement over the tattoo price between HH and MH, the tattoo artist. HH objected after learning the cost of the tattoo reached Rp600,000,” AKP Sandi told CNNIndonesia.com on Wednesday (24/6).

He explained that HH then told his friend RWMS about the problem. In an emotional state, RWMS gathered five friends and went to confront MH at the tattoo studio in the Taman Bunga area. “Upon arriving at the location, they took MH to an area near the animal park and demanded that the money HH had paid be returned,” he said.

However, MH admitted he could not return the money yet and asked for time. An argument ensued before MH was eventually taken back to the stand where he worked as a tattoo artist. “A quarrel broke out. Then MH asked for time to return the money. After that, MH was returned to Taman Bunga, specifically to the tattoo stand,” he detailed.

Upon arriving back at the location, RWMS, who got out of the car first, saw Jaka Malau sitting near the tattoo stand. In an emotional state, RWMS accused the victim of being MH’s friend. “RWMS, who was the first to exit the car, saw the victim Jaka Malau sitting near the tattoo stand. The suspect RWMS, in an emotional state, accused the victim of being involved because he was a friend of MH,” he stated.

A quarrel between the two was unavoidable and escalated into a physical fight. Seeing RWMS involved in the brawl, his five friends arrived and together assaulted the victim. “Then a quarrel and punching occurred. Unwilling to accept RWMS being hit, RWMS’s friends came and immediately carried out the assault on Jaka Malau,” Sandi said.

It was later discovered that Jaka had no connection to the dispute between HH and MH. The victim was allegedly targeted by mistake due to a misunderstanding by the suspects. “After being beaten, the victim was left critically injured on the roadside. The victim was then taken to hospital but his life could not be saved. The victim’s body was eventually autopsied with his family’s consent,” Sandi stated.

Police have named six individuals as suspects in the joint assault case that resulted in the victim’s death. All suspects are now detained to undergo legal proceedings. “All six suspects have been detained. The six suspects are FS (30), RP (24), RWMS (28), PGS (44), RS (52), and SS (43). The suspects will be legally processed to account for their actions,” Sandi asserted.