Supriyanto, 52, a physical education teacher at an elementary school in Wonogiri, Central Java, has been arrested for allegedly molesting 33 pupils over the past two years.
The suspect allegedly committed sexual abuse to his students at two elementary schools in Girimanto district since 2003, a preliminary investigation indicates.
“We will focus on the recent victims first,” Wonogiri Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Mohammad Tora said over the weekend.
Most of the reported victims are fifth and sixth graders aged between 10 and 12 years old.
Tora said a sixth grader had alleged that Supriyanto groped her during a sports lesson. The suspect ordered other pupils to walk to a sports field some two kilometers away from the school. During this time, the victim was taken by the suspect on a motorcycle to the field and she was molested before the other students arrived, he added.
“The suspect applied a similar modus operandi to several other girls,” Tora said.
“After we arrested the suspect, other victims were encouraged to report to us. As of today, 33 [students] and counting have reported.”
The suspect has been charged under the 2016 law on child protection and faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and chemical castration, if found guilty.
Data from the Wonogiri Family Planning, Family Welfare and Women’s Empowerment Board recorded 59 cases of sexual assault in the regency in 2016, an increase from 51 cases in 2015 and 46 in 2014.
“As of October this year, there were 61 cases, 20 of which involved minors,” said the board’s head, Reni Ratnasari.
