Man arrested, charged with brutal murder

JAKARTA (JP): The North Jakarta police have arrested a 28-year-old man and charged him with the murder on Wednesday of an motorcycle taxi driver.

The suspect, identified only as "RI", was arrested less than one day after the brutal murder. He was drinking at a small coffee shop in a nearby slum area in Tanjung Priok when a group of police officers apprehended him.

City police spokesman Lt. Col. Bambang Permantoro said yesterday that the suspect was believed to have brutally stabbed Nusalim, 28, and then dumped the body on Jl. Bisma Raya Tengah in the Papango district at about 10 p.m. on Wednesday night.

Nusalim's body was found by police patrolmen an hour later with at least five stab wounds in his body, Bambang said.

According to the spokesman, preliminary investigations have revealed that the suspect had been angry upon learning that Nusalim had had a love affair with the suspect's uncle's wife, identified as In, 30.

Police consider significant a statement by Nusalim's wife that she had recently had a serious quarrel with her husband after seeing Nusalim carrying In on his motorcycle in an intimate way.

However, the police have not yet been able to find In and her 35-year-old husband, Mar, a porter at Pasar DKI market in Sunter Agung.

"Both left the city for their hometown two weeks ago," Bambang said.

Another relative of RI has told police detectives that Mar's nephew (RI) was carrying a sickle on Wednesday evening.

Self-protection

When queried about the sickle, RI reportedly responded that it was intended for self-protection because he was carrying Rp 500,000 (US$220) in cash to a relative in a slum in the Tanjung Priok area.

Police said that during questioning RI confessed to the crime, saying that he had sought Nusalim out at Taman Nyiur, about one kilometer from the place where Nusalem's body was found.

RI, who had never met the victim before, found Nusalim with the help of other motorcycle taxi drivers, Bambang said. RI asked Nusalim for a lift and then proceeded to ask him questions about Nusalim's alleged affair with his aunt.

According to Bambang, the victim replied that it was none of RI's business, which made RI angry.

"Even your uncle himself never worries about that!" Nusalim said, as reportedly quoted by RI.

Nusalim incurred major gashes to his abdomen, back and hands.

"When the police found the body, his intestines were spilling out onto the ground," Bambang said. (bsr)