Orphan mistakenly killed by youths

JAKARTA (JP): A 17-year-old orphan was stabbed to death by a group of youths in Ciracas market in East Jakarta in the early hours of Sunday.

Two of his friends were also wounded.

Eyewitnesses said that Budiyatna and his friends were mistakenly set upon by the local teenagers, who thought the three had been involved in a fight with them.

Budiyatna, a restaurant employee, died of severe wounds to his chest and stomach.

Sayem, 62, a vegetable seller, said that she witnessed the three young men walking past her stall at around 2 a.m. when the fight between two local youth groups took place.

"I saw them walking here ... they were not involved in the fight," she said.

Budi was found dead in the bus stop in front of the Ciracas market at around 5 a.m., while his two friends, identified as Ujang and Mahyandi were badly injured.

"Such a brawl is not a new phenomenon here but this morning the two groups threw firecrackers at each other. Traders here are tired of dispersing them so we just let them be as long as they don't mess around with our merchandises," Sayem said.

The victim was believed to have been invited by his friends to patrol the neighborhood to wake people up for the Ramadhan pre- dawn meal. (04)