Guard killed while patrolling factory

JAKARTA (JP): A security guard for a factory in Bekasi was found dead early yesterday with at least eight stab wounds in his body, a police officer said.

Second Lt. Saut Gultom of Bekasi Police precinct said that Sunarto, 45, was killed by a group of people, who broke into the warehouse of PT Epi Terma Mas, a lathe assembler.

He said police found several lathes outside the warehouse, indicating that the suspects had attempted to remove the heavy equipment but failed to load them into their vehicle, probably due to a lack of time.

"It's therefore impossible that there were less than two people in the group because the machines are too heavy."

Gultom said that the suspects were still at large.

Sunarto, of Jl. Lumbu Utara, Bojong in Rawalumbu district, is believed to have died from a fatal wound to the back of his head.

"We found his uniform torn into pieces, indicating that he had tried to defend himself before he was killed."

A preliminary investigation revealed that the guard was attacked while patrolling the factory in the early hours of yesterday morning.

"According to the other security officers, Sunarto wanted to secure the warehouse, which was located at the back of the factory's compound," Gultom said.

But he provided no details about why the victim's colleagues knew nothing about Sunarto's fate until factory workers found the guard's body at the side of the warehouse at 7:30 a.m.

Police found car tire tracks around the area where Sunarto was attacked and stabbed, Gultom said. (04)