Morgue activities paralyzed after attack

Morgue activities paralyzed after attack

JAKARTA (JP): The morgue at Cipto Mangunkusumo General
Hospital (RSCM) in Central Jakarta was devoid of activity on
Tuesday, following an incident on Monday in which relatives of a
murder victim ran amok.

Doctors and staff said they were still in shock. "We feel
unsafe doing our job," forensic expert Agus Purwadianto, who
sustained slight injuries in the attack, told The Jakarta Post.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Mulyono Sulaiman said 14
people were being questioned about the incident by the Central
Jakarta Police. He said they could be charged with a number of
crimes.

The possible charges against the men, including Hercules, a
reputed gang leader, could include "torture, vandalism and
issuing threats", Mulyono said at Jakarta Police Headquarters.

As of Tuesday afternoon five bodies had been left at the
morgue's entrance, a few of which were not accompanied by any
family members. No autopsies were performed on Tuesday, and 10
bodies which arrived on Monday and Tuesday remained unexamined.

Agus said it would require at least two or three days for
activities at the morgue to return to normal.

"We're waiting for the results of the police investigation,"
he said.

Dozens of police officers were guarding the morgue, where
shattered windows, broken equipment and spots of dried blood were
visible.

Some 40 people ran amok at the morgue on Monday afternoon
following an autopsy on Fernando Helio Parada. The 30-year-old,
who helped coordinate parking at Bengkel Night Park in South
Jakarta, was stabbed to death after he reportedly demanded money
from the occupants of a vehicle.

The relatives of the victim reportedly were angry because they
believed an autopsy had been performed on Fernando without their
consent. Morgue officials, however, said the victim's wife and
heir had been notified.

The hospital's management filed a report about the incident
with the Central Jakarta Police on Tuesday afternoon, Central
Jakarta Police deputy chief of detectives Sr. Insp. Sutrisno
said.

Meanwhile on Monday night, Hercules and other relatives of
Fernando filed a complaint with the police against RSCM for what
they called an unauthorized autopsy.

Hercules said other people, not related to Fernando, were
involved in the incident at RSCM. He said these people sided with
the relatives in the disagreement with morgue officials.

A number of relatives of Fernando continued to stand watch
over his body at the morgue on Tuesday, while others accompanied
his widow, Anastasia Bunga, to a Central Jakarta hospital, where
she delivered her fourth child. (07/jaw)