Housewife found dead in Cikarang

JAKARTA (JP): A 25-year-old housewife was found dead in her house made out of bamboo matting in Cikarang, Bekasi, on Saturday hanging from a curtain.

Her husband, Endang, 28, a secondhand goods peddler, was away in Depok earning money for his one-child family when the body of Esih binti Lamri was found by one of their neighbors at 7 a.m.

Asum, the deceased's nephew, said the neighbors rushed to get into the house after being alerted by the unceasing crying of Esih's son, Deden, 3.

"She was found hanging in the living room of the house by a green cloth used as a curtain on the front window," he said.

Asum strongly believed that his aunt had been murdered because some bruises were found on Esih's face and dried blood on both thighs.

According to Asum, his aunt's husband spent most of his days in Depok looking for secondhand goods, going from door to door with his cart in an attempt to earn money for his family.

"Endang would only go home if he had enough money," he said.

The deceased was often alone with her son in the tiny house in Cikarang.

Esih's relatives packed Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, Central Jakarta, on Saturday where the deceased had to undergo a postmortem examination.

Until late afternoon, the result of the examination remained unknown.

Like Asum, the dead woman's relatives also believed that it was unlikely for Esih to commit suicide.

"She was a solemn wife and she had a good relationship with her husband as well as other people," said Encun, an uncle of the deceased.

"The police have to find who did this to her, they (Esih and her family) never give trouble to anyone," he said.

In response, Cikarang police chief First Lt. Sukatna promised to assign his men to comb the neighborhood area to find clues that could lead to an explanation of Esih's death.

The officer believed that the suspect, if any crime existed, must be the deceased's close neighbor, or at least someone who was already familiar with the deceased's family as there was no sign of theft found at the scene.

"Esih's house is fairly remote from other houses, and they're too poor to be robbed. So it's very possible that the suspect is from a nearby area, someone who knows in detail about the house and its inhabitants," Sukatna told The Jakarta Post.

Police suspected the death might have taken place between midnight and dawn, when there was no witness and Esih's son was asleep.

"However, we're open to any information to help us solve this incident," he said. (emf)