Teenager arrested for killing mother

JAKARTA (JP): Police arrested a 17-year-old man in Central Jakarta for allegedly stabbing his mother to death yesterday.

City police spokesman Lt. Col. E. Aritonang said the suspect, identified as Hardiansyah, was believed to have killed his mother after she berated him.

The teenager's 50-year-old mother, Jumriati, died at the scene from two stab wounds to her chest and abdomen.

Police arrested the suspect a short distance from his house on Jl. Setiakawan in the Gambir district.

"The suspect said he was very upset and lost his temper during a heated argument with Jumriati and then took a knife from the kitchen and stabbed her," Aritonang said.

Jumriati lived with her 11 children in a modest two-story house along an alley on Jl. Setiakawan.

Aritonang quoted one of the woman's children, Sopian, as saying that Jumriati often felt depressed after her marriage failed and she encountered financial problems. He said she scolded her children without clear reasons.

Jumriati's body was found about 7 a.m. in the living room by one of her daughters, Jubaidah, he said.

Aritonang said the teenager would face up to 15 years in jail if convicted of killing his mother.

Last December, a 64-year-old man stabbed his son to death in East Jakarta.

The stabbing was sparked by a minor argument after the son, Muhammad Nurdin, asked his mother for money. Nurdin allegedly resented being given less than he had asked for and threatened to kill his mother and younger sisters.

Nurdin, who was unemployed, died from three severe stab wounds allegedly inflicted by his father, Baddarudin, a small scale trader.

When asked to comment on the two incidents, Purnianti, a criminologist of University of Indonesia, said the two alleged attackers would receive a penalty of more than 15 years because they were related to the victims.

"The same punishment is also valid if the victims is a legal husband or wife."

But, she underlined the importance of looking at the incidents from a psychological perspective as neither of the alleged attackers were criminals.

"In both cases, the suspects were involved in prolonged conflicts with the victims.

"It's hard to control their conduct when they feel really rejected by the victims," she said, adding that the judge would take these matters into consideration. (cst/emf)