Bekasi. Police on Sunday linked the deaths of seven young men, whose bodies were discovered floating in the Bekasi River, to a mass arrest of teenagers allegedly involved in a gang fight.

The seven youths reportedly tried to evade a police chase by jumping into the river after 18 of their friends were arrested on Saturday evening, according to Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Karyoto, who spoke at the scene in the Jakarta suburb of Bekasi.

Earlier that evening, a police patrol had apprehended 18 teenagers in the Rawalumbu district of Bekasi for their alleged involvement in a gang fight, Karyoto said.

“We arrested 18 individuals, three of whom have been charged for carrying sharp weapons,” Karyoto said.

Some of the other teenagers fled, and a few jumped into the river, fearing arrest by the police patrol, he added.

However, Karyoto cautioned against drawing early conclusions, stating that investigations are ongoing, and police are continuing to interview witnesses.

One of the deceased has been identified as Muhammad Rizky, whose family visited the Kramat Jati Police Hospital to claim his body.

Dwi Septiani Wulandari, a cousin, said Rizky had left home on Saturday afternoon to attend a friend’s birthday party. Afterward, Rizky and his friends gathered near the river when “police arrived and started chasing them,” Dwi said.

The family immediately identified Rizky by the clothes he had worn that day.