Indonesia soccer deaths trial begins for 5 charged

An Indonesian court began trial Monday against five men on charges of negligence leading to the deaths of 135 people after police fired tear gas inside a soccer stadium.

The deadly crowd surge on October 1 in East Java’s Malang city was one of the world’s worst sporting disasters.Police officers fired tear gas when fans flooded the pitch after Arema FC was defeated in a home match for the first time in 23 years by rival Persebaya Surabaya.

An investigation team set up by Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo concluded the tear gas was the main cause of the crowd surge. Prosecutors charged the five men, three police officials who allowed or ordered officers to use tear gas and the Arema FC Organizing Committee chair and security chief with criminal negligence causing death and bodily harm. The charge carries a penalty of up to five years in jail if found guilty.