Triple murder reconstruction held smoothly in Jagakarsa

JAKARTA (JP): The reconstruction of a triple murder, said to be one of Jakarta's most brutal, was held at the scene of the crime on Jl. Wahid, Ciganjur subdistrict in Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, under tight security yesterday.

Fears of a mob attack on the man suspected of massacring Sukarman, his wife Siti Chotijah and their two-year-old son Azis Nugroho proved unfounded due to well-prepared security arrangements made by the local police precinct.

One hundred police officers were deployed in the area to ensure the reconstruction ran smoothly after three previous cancellations.

Hundreds of people, mostly local residents, shouted angrily at the suspect, Jamaluddin, 22, as he walked the short distance from the police car to the victims' house, who were formerly his close neighbors.

Jamaluddin, who looked depressed, demonstrated how he killed the Sukarman family earlier this month.

The suspect, who dropped out of his studies at Al Hikmah Islamic School in Jeruk Purut, Cilandak, South Jakarta, allegedly murdered his neighbors to satisfy a personal vendetta.

Yesterday's reenactment showed the motive to be anger and the deep grudge which he bore. Jamaluddin was aggrieved because the Sukarman family failed to show him the respect he felt he deserved. He said they treated him like a maid, when in fact he taught the Koran to Sukarman's children.

Around 7 p.m. on April 7, the suspect allegedly hid on the roof of the victims' house. He entered their home at 3 a.m.

"I killed Sukarman by stabbing him in the throat, neck and stomach," he told police. Siti, who was awakened by the noise, was stabbed in the chest, neck and face.

Azis, who was the last victim, began to cry and tried to sit on Jamaluddin's lap because he was very close to his parents' assailant.

"I stabbed him in the stomach. I was afraid he would recognize me," Jamaluddin said.

The couple's two other sons, Aditya Riyanto, 12, and Aji Yudanto, 10, survived the massacre.

He then ran out of the house and headed toward his own dwelling, where he cleaned blood of his clothes. The machete used in the killings was disposed of in a small river near the house.

Jeering filled the air at yesterday's reconstruction. Jamaluddin was mocked by his former neighbors, especially when he shed tears after entering his own house, which had been abandoned by his family.

The police then guided him as he showed how he returned to the main street and took a taxi back to his boarding house in Meruya, West Jakarta.

The killing was solved after forensic experts found Jamaluddin's fingerprints at the scene of the crime.

"The investigation has now been completed and we hope to submit the dossiers on this case to the Prosecutor's Office early next week," head of South Jakarta Police Precinct Lt. Col. Yudi Susharianto told The Jakarta Post.

Yudi said that Jamaluddin would be charged with premeditated murder under Article 340 and Article 365 of the Criminal Code, an offense which carries a maximum sentence of death.

"But we will have to wait for the prosecutor's decision on this case. Hopefully justice will prevail," he added.

The reconstruction was organized to allow police to match evidence in the case with Jamaluddin's confession.

Jamaluddin is currently being detained at South Jakarta Police Precinct. (edt)