Lawyer Claims No Intent in Fatal Santri Burning Case

The lawyer for MR, a teenager named as a suspect in the case of a santri who was burned to death in Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, believes there was no element of intent in the incident. Moh. Dani Gaos Abd. Razak, from the Patriot Keadilan Legal Aid Institute (LBH PADI), stated in Mataram on Wednesday that their field investigation and MR’s account aim to clarify that the client did not deliberately set his friend on fire, contrary to narratives circulating during a House of Representatives Commission III hearing. The conclusion was reached after the power of attorney was signed on Tuesday. According to the client’s account, the incident began when several students were about to paint a room at the Islamic boarding school and used petrol as a paint thinner because no turpentine was available. The fire then grew when the petrol came near a flame that was being used to bend catapult wood. The lawyer described the situation as an accident, not an intentional act. He explained that the ensuing panic led to some students escaping the room, while three others were briefly trapped before being evacuated and taken to a health facility. These facts will form part of the defence in the legal proceedings against MR. Previously, Central Lombok Police and the NTB Regional Police’s Directorate of General Criminal Investigation had named two suspects in the case: AMR (55), the head of the Islamic boarding school, and MR (15), a fellow student. Both are charged under Article 359 or Article 360 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 474 paragraphs (2) and (3) of Law Number 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code, for alleged negligence resulting in death and serious injury, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.