inp.polri.go.id - Riau. Police arrested four individuals suspected of involvement in forest and land fires in Siak Regency, Riau. The four were named suspects after police uncovered three forest and land fires in different locations.

The arrests were made by the Siak Sub-regional Police Criminal Investigation Unit, led by the Head of Criminal Investigation, Police Senior Inspector Raja Kosmos. Investigators conducted a series of investigations and collected evidence from each crime scene.

"The first case occurred in a production forest area located on Zamrud Oil Field, owned by PT Bumi Siak Pusako, Dayun Village, Dayun District. The 37-hectare fire, which occurred on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, at 11:00 PM WIB, led to the naming of two suspects, MS and MPS," Kosmos said on Monday (9/7/2026).

From the location, police seized several pieces of evidence, including a hoe, a lawn mower, a machete, a burlap sack containing dolomite fertilizer, a sprayer, and a jerrycan containing fuel.

"The two suspects are strongly suspected of carrying out illegal plantation activities within the forest area and burning the land," said Kosmos.

The second case occurred in the Industrial Plantation Forest (HTI) concession area of ​​PT Arara Abadi, in Pinang Sebatang Timur Village, Tualang District. The fire on Friday, September 4, 2026, destroyed 1.3 hectares of land. Police subsequently named a man with the initials YT as a suspect in the case.

"At this second location, investigators confiscated evidence including a hoe, a chainsaw, two machetes, a dodos (a type of wood used for cooking), oil palm seedlings, burnt wood, and three bottles containing fuel, biodiesel, and oil. Suspect YT is suspected of criminal activity involving illegal plantation activities and forest burning," he explained.

The third case occurred in Sungai Betung, Rempak Village, Siak District. The incident, which occurred on Sunday, September 6, 2026, caused a 0.9 hectare fire. The police have named a man with the initials SBNG as a suspect.

"The suspect, SBNG, was proven to have deliberately cleared the plantation land by burning," explained Kosmos.

From the scene, the police confiscated several pieces of evidence, including buckets, matches, burnt wood, and logs topped with burlap sacks used to extinguish the fire.

The four suspects are currently undergoing legal proceedings on suspicion of forest and land burning and illegal plantation activities. The police emphasized that land clearing by burning is an action that can be prosecuted according to applicable regulations.

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