Scavengers burn friend to death over hut fire

Scavengers burn friend to death over hut fire

JAKARTA (JP): Angry scavengers from Tanjung Duren, West
Jakarta tied the hands and legs of a fellow scavenger with wire
on Monday before setting him ablaze and burning him to death, for
allegedly burning down several huts in the area.

West Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Iwan Ismet told reporters
on Monday that the scavenger, Sutarno, alias Kebo, 46, had
accidentally burned down the huts of 12 scavengers living in the
area.

Sutarno had asked for some money. When other local scavengers
refused, Sutarno kicked over a stove that fell and set the huts
ablaze.

"The angry scavengers then tracked Sutarno down, tied him up
and burned him to death. Police are still investigating the
case," Iwan told reporters on Monday.

The charred corpse of Sutarno was found by a cleaner in a
trashbin behind Mal Taman Anggrek in West Jakarta, on Monday.

The head of the local neighborhood community, Karimun Usman,
said that Sutarno lived behind the mall. The corpse, Karimun
said, was found by a local resident Madjid, 50, who had gone to
dispose trash at 7:30 a.m. on Monday.

The police took the body to Cipto Mangunkusumo General
Hospital (RSCM) morgue for a postmortem examination.

Parmin, 36, a scavenger in the neighborhood, gave a different
account, saying that Sutarno was burned to death by "local
residents."

Parmin said Sutarno got angry when local people, who had
assigned Sutarno to collect garbage from the area and keep the
neighborhood clean, refused to pay him.

Several residents, whose huts were gutted by fire, searched
for Sutarno on Sunday night after the fire. After finding
Sutarno, the residents tied both his legs and hands with wires
and questioned him.

"During the interrogation, Sutarno gave funny answers which
made the residents even more furious. Ignoring Sutarno's screams,
the residents then placed him into a trash bin, doused gasoline
on him and burned him alive," he told the Jakarta Post. (01/ylt)