VIVAnews - The Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team of the Indonesian Police which was sent to help identifying the bushfire victims in Victoria, Australia reported the result at the Police Headquarters, Jakarta on March 2.
The identification team from the Indonesian Police left Australia on Saturday, Feb. 28. The team members include pathologists and odontologists. They worked on their investigation at the Victoria Forensic Institute.
The head of the identification team of the Indonesian Police, Chief Commissioner Mussadeq Ishaq, said the car driven by Dean and Rudi was found on Feb. 11. There were two bodies, which were already seriously disrupted, found inside the car. "[We found] a silver necklace [which was] knowingly belongs to one of the victims. It was belonged to Dean Lesmana," said Mussadeq in the Police Headquarters, Jakarta on Monday, March 2.
Mussadeq added that the Indonesian and Victoria police went to the location on Tuesday, Feb. 17, and confirmed that the car was the one driven by the two missing Indonesians. Nevertheless, he also said that the two bodies have not yet been confirmed as Dean and Rudi. "They are still declared as missing persons," he added.
The primer investigation on the bodies is still intensively on going. "It covers DNA, teeth, finger prints, and antemortem data examination," he said.
Mussadeq said that there will be a reconciliation meeting on 10 bodies including the ones which are suspected as Dean and Rudi. The meeting will match the antemortem data with postmortem data.
The director of the Victoria Forensic Institute, Professor Stephen Cordner, acknowledged that they were very much helped by the Indonesian team. "They arrived a week after the disaster and reinforced our team for two week," said Cordner. In addition to sending the team, Indonesia has also granted a relief aid of US$ 1 million.
Hundreds of hot spots burned Victoria on Feb. 7. The temperature reached 47 degree Celsius and the wind blew at 100 km/hour speed. As many as 210 people were found dead and thousands of people lost their homes due to the fire.
The special investigators of the fire incident are still probing into the cause of the fire incident. Meanwhile, police has already detained Brendan Sokaluk with a conviction of igniting fire which claimed people's lives and setting a massive forest fire in Churchill. Police fire specialist team still continues the investigation on several hot spots that are suspected as deliberately lit.
The two missing Indonesians, Dean Lesmana and Rudi were reported missing during the Victorian bushfires.
--
Translated by: Ariyantri E. Tarman
