Dead woman's children suspected of murder

Dead woman's children suspected of murder

TANGERANG (JP): Police continued the investigation on Monday
but had yet to make a final conclusion on a brutal murder
allegedly committed by four siblings on their own mother and
sister in Cipondoh, Tangerang, over the weekend.

Tangerang Police also questioned an eye witness in the Sunday
murder, identified only as 35-year-old Bejo.

"We've come to a preliminary conclusion that the killing may
have something to do with black magic practices run by the
family," Tangerang Police chief Lt. Col. Pudji Hartanto said on
Monday.

The four suspects, aged between 12 to 21 years old, were
identified as Erni, Zaimi, Nurochman and Abdul Latif. They
admitted to the police that they had killed their mother Minah,
45, and sister Erna, 17, on Sunday morning at the family's house
at the Cipondoh Makmur housing complex in Tangerang.

"They were likely possessed by bad spirits as they went into a
rage and hit Minah and Erna in the faces with hard objects, which
resulted in their instant deaths," Pudji said.

Stones and a knife, which were used as murder tools, were
seized as evidence, Pudji added.

"The children were acting like they were drunk... They failed
to respond to police questions and kept on talking about weird
stuff," Pudji said.

Idup Ansori, a local community leader, said Minah's husband
Zarkasih, 50, was known to local residents as a psychic who could
heal victims of black magic practices.

When the murder took place, Zarkasih and his other daughter
Jani were in Lampung, Sumatra.

Police said the incident was first spotted by a neighbor named
Bejo who heard screams from the house at about 10 a.m. "He tried
to peek through the wall and saw one of the kids pointing a long
machete at the victims," Pudji said.

Frantic daughter

Bejo quickly reported the matter to a local leader named Joni
Budiman who went straight to the Cipondoh subprecinct police.

"Shortly afterward, police officers arrived at the scene but
were prevented by Minah's children from going inside the house
which was surrounded by high walls," he said.

When police eventually managed to apprehend Zaimi, Nurochman
and Abdul Latif, they barged into the house and found two bodies
on the front porch.

Both Minah and Erna suffered severe wounds and injuries
resulting from blunt objects.

Onlookers were already swarming the scene when suddenly Erni,
the eldest daughter, reportedly appeared from the top of the roof
screaming like a frantic woman.

Erni was naked except for a small shirt and repeatedly yelled
the name "Waluyo" and screamed that she had been raped.

"Where's Waluyo! I've been raped," she shouted, pointing at
her exposed private parts.

She resisted arrest before police eventually handcuffed her
and covered her body with a sarong.

Zaimi, one of the four alleged killers, even said that there
was a bad spirit named Waluyo who possessed their bodies and led
them to massacre.

Police dogs which were released to detect blood prints and
search the murder scene almost bit the four children, but were
quickly secured by the officers.

"When asked about the incident, the children said they did not
recall anything," Pudji said.

An intensive investigation is underway, pending further
results of the case. (41/edt)