Two suspects arrested over Pamulang murder
JAKARTA (JP): Two children and their pregnant mother were found murdered in their Bumi Pelita Kencana housing complex residence on Wednesday in Pondok Cabe, Pamulang.
Suroto found his six-month pregnant wife, Suryatiningsih, 36, and his 12-year-old daughter, Nurwanti, dead in a wardrobe. He also discovered his nine-year-old son, Rachmanto, lifeless in a filled bathtub.
Police arrested two men for the murders later on Wednesday, city police spokesman Lt. Col. Aritonang said on Thursday.
The two suspects, Soleh, 47, and Sahmud Jusani, 30, were staying at a house in the victims' neighborhood, he said.
"What sins have I committed to deserve such tragedy falling on my family. I have no enemies at all," cried Suroto, who had recently lost his job at state-owned Pelita Air Service in Halim Perdanakusuma, East Jakarta.
Many residents criticized the way police at the scene handled the case, saying the detectives carried themselves unprofessionally.
Suroto was placed under arrest shortly after police came to the scene, but was released early Thursday.
A local resident said that despite statements from people living in the neighborhood, the detectives had insisted on treating Suroto as a suspect.
Both Soleh and Sahmud admitted to the killings, saying they turned on the victims after being caught red-handed breaking into a cupboard in the house.
"We didn't plan on killing the victims. We were just forced to do it," Sahmud said.
Sahmud had been staying at a nearby house, while Soleh, a resident of Sukabumi in West Java, had been hired to paint the neighbor's house.
He said they broke into Suroto's house after they had heard that Suryatiningsih had just received an inheritance of Rp 10 million from her parents in Bandung to help the family since Suroto had lost his job.
Sahmud denied murdering the victims, saying he had only been a lookout while Soleh killed the victims one by one.
When Suryatiningsih, who had just arrived home after picking up her daughter from school, came upon them, he said they pretended to be borrowing a saw.
Soleh then quickly covered Suryatiningsih's mouth and hit her head to the floor before stabbing her, Aritonang said.
Nurwanti, who had been in the bathroom, was slashed in the neck, stomach and chest several times by Sahmud, he said.
Before his arrest, Soleh reportedly said he committed the murder without worrying about the consequences because he needed money to remarry.
Aritonang said the two suspects moved their victims to a wardrobe and then cleaned blood from the floor.
They later killed Rachmanto, a fifth grade student of a state elementary school near the housing complex, at 1:30 p.m. when he arrived home from school.
The two suspects were being detained at the South Jakarta Police Precinct for further investigation.
Following a postmortem examination at Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, the three bodies were taken to Bandung for burial at a family cemetery. (jun/rms)