Agency Report

An Indonesian court Tuesday sentenced a teacher to life in prison for the rape of 13 students, in a case that has drawn national attention to sexual abuse in the country’s religious boarding schools.

Bandung district court in West Java found Herry Wirawan guilty of raping 13 female students, all minors, and impregnating at least eight of them.

During the trial, it was revealed he had raped the children — many from poor families attending the school on scholarships — over five years.

The pattern of abuse came to light when the family of a female student reported Wirawan to the police for raping and impregnating their teenage daughter last year.

The revelations have sparked national outrage, with a senior government official saying President Joko Widodo has paid special attention to the case.

Wirawan, 36, arrived in court in handcuffs and kept his head down as judge Yohannes Purnomo Suryo Adi sentenced him to life in prison.