Decomposed body found in rented house in C. Jakarta

JAKARTA (JP): A decomposed body was found on Tuesday in a rented house in Cempaka Putih, Central Jakarta, a police officer has said.

Chief Sgt. Eko Cahyono of the Central Jakarta Police station said the decomposed body was found in a room of a two-story house belonging to Suwanto Chandra.

It is thought the unidentified man met his death some four months ago.

Eko explained that the police had few clues about the cause of death and had been unable to identify the man, who they presume was the tenant, Ahmad.

"The body was clad in a long-sleeved shirt and black trousers," Eko said, adding that because of the condition of the body nobody was able to say whether or not it was Ahmad.

Suwanto Chandra said he leased the house to Ahmad and the lease would expire in May. "Ahmad claimed to be a student, but Suwanto did not know for sure if Ahmad was a high school or a university student," Eko explained.

Suwanto found the body when he was showing the house to a potential tenant. "The door was locked and Suwanto had to break in."

When they entered the house, he said, they noticed an offensive odor coming from one of the rooms. "They searched and found a decomposed body."

Residents in Jl. Rawa Sari Selatan, Cempaka Putih, told the police that they had smelled the odor several months before, but they thought the smell came from a dead rat somewhere in the area.

Eko quoted local residents as saying that there was a lot of activity around the house five months ago and many young men, who they thought were friends of Ahmad, came and went.

"In the past five months, the house has been quiet and practically abandoned," he said.

The police said it was possible the dead man had been attacked because the body had a fractured skull and missing teeth.

The police sent the body to the Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital's morgue for an autopsy, which will be done on Wednesday.

"We will resume the investigation after we receive the report on the cause of death from the forensic doctor," Eko said. (06)