Ical says family bloodbath was spur of the moment

MEDAN (JP): Muhammad Ferizal Batubara, the 17-year-old accused of bludgeoning his parents and four of his siblings to death with a hammer here on Friday, has denied the murders were premeditated.

The young man nicknamed Ical said on Monday he killed his parents because they forbade him from meeting his girlfriend Poppy and he was enraged after they rejected his request to marry her.

"I planned nothing," the senior in private G.B. Yoshua High School told reporters at the city police headquarters in the North Sumatran capital.

He allegedly killed his father Dr. Arsyad Batubara, 61, mother Delviarina Siregar, 46, elder brother Gun Chaled, 21, and elder sisters Fitrisna, 29, Vini Quita, 25, and Vidi Tinti, 23.

Another sister, Vita Junia, 27, was not at home when the murders occurred.

Medan Police chief Col. Nono Priyono said he believed the slayings were premeditated. As of Monday, the police believed Ical acted alone.

Nono said Ical, who has legal representation, will soon undergo a psychiatric examination.

Police said Ical had suffered depression since elementary school because he was often grounded from leaving home.

His parents had reportedly arranged for home tutoring at one point.

Ical has claimed he was often reprimanded by his parents and siblings.

Police said that they were still questioning Poppy and Akhir, Fuad and Yuki, three of Ical's friends.

As reported earlier, the police were informed of the murder by Akhir and Fuad at 9:30 p.m. on Friday.

Ical reportedly telephoned the friends at about 5 p.m. on Friday to tell them he was hosting a party. When they arrived, the friends found three bodies in the living room.

Ical asked them to help bury the bodies in a room in which he had dug up the floor. The friends fled after telling him to wash his bloodied clothes first.

Poppy told police Ical visited her at about 9:30 p.m. on Friday and confessed to the killings.

Ical was arrested at 2 a.m. on Saturday. (21/byg)