Questions Surround Cause of Death of BPK Member Haerul Saleh in Fire at His Office Space

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Member IV of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), Haerul Saleh, died in a house fire in Tanjung Barat, Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, on Friday morning (8/5/2026).

The incident has left several questions unanswered, from the cause, the affected area, to the relatives who survived.

Firefighters stated that the fire was triggered by thinner liquid remnants from the house renovation. However, the police have not yet revealed how the thinner ignited the flames.

It is also unknown whether Haerul died directly in his burning office space or received treatment at the hospital.

This house is a private residence that Haerul and his family had occupied for a few years after renovations.

However, since the beginning of Ramadan, his child and wife chose to stay at the BPK official residence in the Pondok Indah area, Kebayoran Lama.

“It is suspected that the fire originated from remnants of thinner from the house renovation,” said Asril when confirmed by Kompas.com on Friday.

Security personnel at the house and local residents attempted to extinguish the fire using fire extinguishers.

However, the flames continued to grow.

It was only after 12 fire trucks arrived that the fire could be extinguished within one hour.

On the same floor, it is known that there were three of his relatives as well.

Then, Harpen, who was guarding the ground floor of the house, heard shouts from upstairs. The sound of quick footsteps grew louder, until three people reached him.

Haerul was not among them. They immediately rushed back to the fourth floor with fire extinguishers.