Police doubt arson killed six house occupants

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Police brushed aside the possibility of arson in a fire that killed a senior prosecutor and her relatives on Nov. 8, making it clear that the source of information on what had happened before the fire started was not reliable.

Cilandak Police chief Comr. Yanti Suyamtilah said on Saturday there was only a small possibility that the fire that razed the house of Evi Kawet, 50, at a housing complex for prosecutors on Jl. Adhyaksa, Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta, had been started deliberately.

"On the basis of evidence taken from the scene and statements from witnesses, we find it hard to conclude the fire was arson. The possibility is very small. There is very little corroborating evidence," she told The Jakarta Post over the phone.

The suspicion of arson arose after statements made by the only survivor of the fire, Evi Kawet's granddaughter, Tabitha, 5, who claimed she saw two unidentified men jump over a boundary fence minutes before the fire started at dawn.

But Yanti said the police could not rely on statements made by an underage person. "She (Tabitha) is still a child," she said.

Tabitha, who is recovering from burns, told her mother, Claudia Jacqueline Esther Juliet Williams, about the two men and also about a dog that mysteriously disappeared, and was said to have barked continuously before the family woke up, as well as about the key to the front door, which was the only exit.

Evi Kawet, Jacqueline's mother, was a prosecutor with the South Jakarta Prosecutor's Office, who was usually entrusted with drug-related and theft cases.

Citing Tabitha's statement, Jacqueline said all seven people in the house found themselves trapped and so they went up to the second floor. Evi Kawet and her friend, Alfrida Wisye Sumeysey, 48, who was staying overnight, poured water on Tabitha's burning body and tossed her up onto the roof, where neighbors were at hand to offer help.

Unfortunately, the fire engulfed the ceiling, which soon collapsed, preventing the escape of all six remaining people.

Besides Evi Kawet and Wisye, the other victims were Tabitha's older brothers Waspada Andhika Taruna Dirgantara Panji Bhayangkara, or Andhika, 12; Alvaro Immanuel Christoval Gabriel, or Nuel, 8; Wisye's daughters Margaretha Gozal, 27, and Christien Julinda, 25.

Jacqueline and husband Royce Keith Williams, who live in the United States, had left their three children with Evi Kawet as they were still seeking U.S. citizenship for the children.

Jacqueline claimed that she had won support from Californian congressman Jerry Lewis and Californian senator Diane Feinstein for faster processing of Tabitha's citizenship application.

"Mr. Lewis promised the process would be accomplished before Christmas, stating it would become a Christmas gift for Tabitha," she said.

Meanwhile, Tabitha's state of health was much improved on Saturday, although she was still in an insolation room where communication with the Post could only be made via an intercom.

"I can walk now. The dressings around my legs have been removed. Just wait a second -- see for yourself," she said, hanging up the handset to show the Post her healing legs through the window. She picked it up again adding, "But my arms still feel sore."

With both arms still in bandages, Tabitha seemed preoccupied with her Barbie dolls.

"You can bring me chocolate when you come to visit again," she quipped.