A 55-year-old woman named Satinah from the village of Yosorati in Jember, East Java, was found brutally murdered in her home one week ago. Police finally revealed that her tragic and senseless death was caused by one man’s suspicion that Satinah had killed his child using santet (black magic).
Police said that six men had been involved in Satinah’s death and that they had arrested the alleged mastermind behind the murder.
“The brains behind the plot to murder Satinah, alias Bu Aris, has been arrested and named a suspect. The suspect’s initials are NM and he is one of the victim’s neighbors,” said Jember Police Chief Kusworo Wibowo today as quoted by Detik.
Kusworo said the 5 other men involved in the murder has not been captured but police were hunting them down.
According to the police chief, the motive for the murder was NM’s belief that Satinah had caused the death of his child utilizing black magic.
NM told the police his child had gotten sick about two months ago and that one night he had a dream about meeting Satinah. Soon after, the woman also known as Bu Aris came to him asking for water.
Somehow the connection between the dream and seeing Satinah soon after convinced NM that the woman had used black magic on his child. After his child died, NM began to make plans to murder the victim and asked for help from 5 other men, including one of his sons and a nephew, to carry out the killing.
Kusworo said the six entered Satinah’s house, three from the back and three from the front, to make sure she could not escape. Some were tasked with strangling the victim while others bashed her head with a club.
Once they were believed she was dead, all six fled. Satinah died soon after from severe head injuries. Police investigating the murder were able to track down NM a short time later.
Belief in santet remains strong in many parts of Indonesia, and murders involving those suspected of black magic still occur with alarming frequency throughout the country.
