Yohanes Maharso Joharsoyo, Jakarta – The Press Council's Journalist Safety Commission (KKJ) is investigating the death of Tribrata TV journalist Rico Sempurna Pasaribu following a fire at his home in Karo Regency, North Sumatra.
The fire, which occurred on June 27, tragically killed Pasaribu, 47, and his entire family: Elfrida boru Ginting (48), Sudi Investasi Pasaribu (12), and Loin Situkur (3).
Erick Tanjung, the coordinator of the Press Council's KKJ, suspects that the fire may be linked to Rico's reporting on gambling practices in Karo and the Indonesian Military (TNI) members may be involved.
"The fire occurred early Thursday morning, June 27," Erick said in a press conference on Tuesday, July 2. "On Wednesday night, June 26, the victim accompanied by his colleague had met with an official believed to be running a gambling den that he had previously exposed in an article."
Erick said that the article was published on June 22 and highlighted the prevalence of gambling in Karo Regency and directly implicated an official in its operation. "We suspect that this was one of the reasons why his house was burned down and a family died."
According to him, the investigation team had met with the victim's colleagues, the Head of the Tribrata TV in Karo Regency, and several key witnesses, including the victim's surviving child. "Almost all of them stated that he (Rico) expressed was a bit anxious and scared before the fire incident because he was being searched for his article," Erick said.
He emphasized that his side is actively gathering facts and evidence related to the incident. The Press Council also stated that a joint investigation team needs to be formed to investigate the fire at the Tribrata TV journalist's house.
The North Sumatra KKJ fact-finding team consists of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Medan, the Association of Television Journalists (IJTI) North Sumatra, the Indonesian Photojournalists (PFI) Medan, the Indonesian Women Journalists Forum (FJPI), and the Medan Legal Aid Institute (LBH Medan).