Police Investigate Claims of Two Teenage Girls Who Burned Gunungkidul Madrasah Over Bullying Grudge
The perpetrators of the burning of a madrasah building in Gunungkidul have admitted to carrying out the act out of revenge for having once been victims of bullying. Police are still investigating the truth of the perpetrators’ claims.
The case of the burning of Madrasah Ibtidaiyah (MI) Yappi, Natah, Nglipar, Gunungkidul occurred on Wednesday morning (19/8). Two rooms were burnt, namely the kitchen and the teachers’ room.
Shortly afterwards, police detained two sisters aged 14 and 15 in connection with the incident. Police said the older sister persuaded her younger sibling to burn the madrasah because of a grudge over having been bullied.
“The motive was disappointment leading to revenge because the 15-year-old perpetrator had once been a victim of bullying by fellow pupils, as well as being hit by a teacher,” said Gunungkidul Police Criminal Investigation Unit Head AKP Tri Hartanto at Gunungkidul Police Station on Friday (21/8/2026).
The bullying case allegedly occurred around seven years ago when the older sister was a pupil at the madrasah. The child also admitted to leaving the MI because she was bullied.
“So actually this child used to attend school there, but by the first or second grade she no longer continued her schooling there,” he said.
However, Tri said the matter still needs to be investigated further, as the statement remains a one-sided claim.
“But that is still only an admission, and we have not followed it up further. If it is true, we will follow it up,” he said.
“Revenge, she only expressed revenge, she was annoyed. In fact, she had previously taken several items, one of which was a headscarf from the school,” he said.
Nevertheless, the burning was said to have been carried out spontaneously. The perpetrator persuaded her younger sister to burn the building in order to attract attention.
“Spontaneous. So at that time she invited her younger sister spontaneously, ‘If we burn this, it will certainly become a commotion,’ said the 15-year-old,” he said.
“From the account, the diesel fuel was obtained from the homes of both perpetrators. Their house had once received a home renovation programme and there was leftover diesel used for lighting (diesel fuel),” he said.
Police said the sisters who carried out the burning have not been detained. This is because police are still conducting an inquiry to determine whether the case can proceed to investigation, especially since the perpetrators are still children.
Apart from their being minors, Tri said the process is currently still at the inquiry stage, so it is not yet possible to apply any articles against the pair.
“We are only limited to searching for and finding a criminal event, and going forward we will bring in the relevant parties, such as the related agencies. Because this involves children, there must automatically be accompaniment as well,” he said.
Nglipar Police Chief AKP Paryadi added that the parents of both perpetrators belong to a family categorised as poor.
“So the conditions are indeed like that and the family is categorised as poor; the parents of both of them work daily as scrap collectors,” he said.