Man burned for stealing

TANGERANG (JP): A 28-year old man was burned to death by an angry mob in Cipondoh, here last Friday, for stealing a motorbike belonging to a local resident, while his friend managed to get away with the loot.

Local residents said that an eyewitness, who was on the way to mosque for Friday noon prayer, saw the victim, later identified as Inpiat, a 28-year-old Bekasi Selatan resident, with another friend hanging around the mosque compound where many motorcycles were parked. The two then stole one of the motorcycles.

The eyewitness shouted for help when the two were about to ride away with the motorbike belonging to Mahun.

In seconds hundreds of people, most of them from the mosque congregation, started chasing them.

Inpiat was beaten viciously before being burned in a plot adjacent to the Al-Barkah mosque, while his friend escaped with the stolen motorcycle.

Cipondoh Police chief First. Insp. Baruno said his men could not stop the mob from attacking Inpiat and burning him to death.

Finally satiated, the mob left Inpiat's charred corpse lying in the plot until police officers rushed it to the Tangerang general hospital.

Baruno did not say if legal action would be taken against the residents over the killing. (41/sur)