Police claim Ciamis killings have black magic link

JAKARTA (JP): Police alleged here on Tuesday that 18 people believed murdered in a killing spree in the West Java regency of Ciamis were involved in black magic.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar M. Sianipar announced a preliminary investigation showed motivation for the acts was driven by personal vengeance of several people against the victims' dabbling in black magic.

He said the people paid locals to carry out the killings in a scheme which resembled the slaying of 200 people, mostly Muslim clerics, in Banyuwangi and other East Java towns last year.

Parigi and Pangandaran districts of Ciamis were shocked on April 10 when six bodies were found, including three bundled inside a sack, floating in Ciwayang River in Pangandaran.

On Monday, police in the West Java capital of Bandung announced their findings to the media.

Based on information from locals, they believed at least 18 people recently reported missing had been killed.

Togar confirmed an earlier report that 34 suspects were being questioned by the police.

He also said the police's preliminary analysis showed the killers targeted male villagers aged between 50 and 80.

The independent Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) said on Monday here at least 50 people were killed in Ciamis.

But Togar said: "Not all the victims in Ciamis were related to this case (of hired killers)."

West Java Military Commander Maj. Gen. Purwadi said Kontras should present their facts to the police.

Asked about similarities with the Banyuwangi killing, Purwadi said it would be premature to assume the same motives were involved.

"Killings of black magic practitioners have taken place for quite a long time, not only during this reform era," he said. "It's just that people now easily take the law into their own hands."

Purwadi also said it was too early to pin the killings to political motives.

A report on Monday said that one of the detained suspects admitted to the police to having been paid from Rp 50,000 to Rp 500,000 (about US$58) for the killings.

Togar also discussed the approach used in the Ciamis killings.

The killers first spread slander in the community about their targeted victims before kidnapping and killing them. They then disposed of the bodies.

Togar said none of the people found were linked to any Muslim organizations or parties, dismissing brewing speculation those murdered were loyalists of certain Muslim parties. (emf/43/aan)