From 18-Year-Old Teen to 73-Year-Old Elderly Man, 5 OKI Residents Arrested for Burning Land

KAYUAGUNG, KOMPAS.com - Five residents of Ogan Komering Ilir (OKI) Regency, South Sumatra, were arrested by police for allegedly setting fire to land to open plantations and farming areas.

The five suspects were apprehended in separate cases across different areas of OKI, ranging in age from 18 to 73 years old.

The police said they used gas lighters and torches made from wooden sticks to burn the land.

As a result of their actions, a total of approximately 6.5 hectares of land burned across the five cases.

The suspects now face up to 10 years in prison and fines reaching Rp 10 billion.

The enforcement was carried out by OKI Police following public concern over haze pollution.

During the investigation, police found evidence of intentional land burning at five different locations.

73-Year-Old Man Sets Fire to Land to Plant Sweet Potatoes

One of the suspects is MT (73), a resident of Tanjung Rancing Village, Kayuagung District.

MT is alleged to have burned about 0.5 hectares of his land to plant sweet potatoes.

He was caught when members of the OKI Police’s Special Crimes Unit along with the local police sector were conducting a ground patrol to handle forest and land fires on Wednesday (19/8/2026) around 2:00 p.m. WIB.

“At the fire site, we questioned MT, who admitted to burning his land, with the burned area being approximately 0.5 hectares,” said OKI Police Chief AKBP Eko Rubiyanto through Criminal Investigation Unit Head M Raka Dwi Darma, confirmed Sunday (20/9/2026).

Fire Points Tracked Using Drones

Police also arrested Am (59), a resident of Ulak Kemang Baru Village, Pampangan District.

The case emerged when officers conducting a patrol on Saturday (29/8/2026) noticed smoke rising.

Police then deployed a drone to pinpoint the coordinates of the fire source.

“After obtaining the coordinates, officers ambushed Am at the location. Upon interrogation, he admitted to burning about 1 hectare of land using a lighter and a torch made from sticks as preparation for planting rice,” Raka explained.