An Indonesian court convicted a policeman on Thursday and acquitted two officers of negligence during a local soccer match in one of the world’s worst stadium stampede disasters.
135 people died during a summit match in the Indonesian league in Malang between Arima and Persibaya in October 2022, and many of them were trampled while escaping from the stadium exits after the police fired gas bombs at the fans.
Last week, a court jailed two Arima officials for negligence in the first ruling in the stampede case.
On Thursday, the court sentenced a policeman to a year and a half in prison, as authorities said the officer ordered the police to fire tear gas, which was banned by FIFA as a control measure.
over the crowds.
The court acquitted two officers, and the judge released them. Reuters was unable to obtain comment from their lawyers.
The investigations of the Indonesian Human Rights Commission concluded that the cause of the stampede was due to the police firing 45 gas bombs, and the investigators said that the numbers exceeded the capacity of the stadium.
The league matches were suspended for several months after the incident, before resuming them again, with some of them being held without fans for security reasons.
Indonesia will host the Under-20 World Cup in May.
