Probe into the murder of Sumarsana nears completion
Probe into the murder of Sumarsana nears completion
JAKARTA (JP): City police detectives said on Sunday they were
close to revealing the suspects and motives behind the murder
of Sumarsana, a private employee whose dismembered body was
discovered a week ago.
Police detective chief Col. Alex Bambang Riatmodjo announced
the investigation could be completed within a matter of days.
Alex, however, did not want to divulge the preliminary results
of the investigation into the case which has grabbed the
attention of the capital.
"Wait for two or three days, then we'll disclose the results
of our investigation," the senior officer said.
Alex said police had questioned 28 witnesses, most of whom
were close friends of the 33-year-old victim.
He said police collected information and data about the victim
and his last-known whereabouts from his family, relatives,
girlfriend, housemates and coworkers at plastic households
manufacturer PT Lion Star.
Police also questioned people whose names were found on
Sumarsana's pager and cellular phone, the officer said.
"While we've been questioning the witnesses, we have also
tried to establish the possible motive behind the murder," Alex
said.
He said his early conclusion was the murder was the result of
a personal dispute or, more precisely, was driven by jealously.
He said his detectives had narrowed their investigation to the
victim's close friends.
"We have dropped the possibility of a rivalry with a
coworker," he said.
Sumarsana was a quality control supervisor at the Lion Star
factory.
Alex refused to answer questions about what police had
uncovered about Sumarsana's sexual behavior.
"There are no facts about this. We'll see later in our
investigation or in the murderer's confession," Alex said.
Police detectives questioned four men shortly after officers
confiscated and examined Sumarsana's personal belongings,
including a diary, a pager and a cellular phone.
The four were identified as Teng In, Agus, Mulyawan and Irvan.
Agus, Mulyawan and Irvan worked with Sumarsana at Lion Star;
but their were no details on Teng In's relationship with the
victim. He is suspected to have been the last person to see
Sumarsana alive.
A source close to the investigation said that of the four men,
two were suspected to be the murderers. However, the source
refused to identify the names of the men.
"The two keep changing their answers when we ask them where
they were on Saturday, Sunday and early Monday," the source said.
Sumarsana was buried by his family in their hometown of
Klaten, Central Java.(emf)