Ibrahim Alawi Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Police have arrested a Pakistani man in connection with the murder of an Indonesian woman in Jeddah's Al-Nahda district. The police received a report from the victim's husband, a Turkish resident, saying that he found his wife strangled to death in their residence. He said he worked as a barber in a salon in the same building and spent long hours at work. At the end of work on the day of the murder, when he returned to their apartment, he noticed that items were scattered. When the police arrived at the scene, their first observation was that there were signs of resistance and movement in the apartment. Furthermore, the door was not broken. This indicated two probabilities: The victim knew the perpetrator of the crime or the perpetrator had a key to the apartment. In the absence of suspects, the husband was questioned. He said his relations with his wife were good and there were no motives for him to kill her. He claimed that when he left for work in the morning, she was in good health. The police detained the husband, who did not provide any leads. While his statements were being recorded, a police team worked to determine the causes of the incident and identified all those who had any relationship with the murdered woman. The forensic report indicated that she was beaten, as there were bruises on different parts of her body. She was also hit on the face and forehead. The culprit did not leave any fingerprints or other evidence that might lead to his identification. Police managed to contact everyone who had any direct relationship with the victim after confirming that the husband was not involved in the crime. The investigation team then started looking for those who had any relationship with the victim and discovered she had dealings with the suspect, aged 26. They had a dispute with regard to financial matters before she got married. Police started searching for the Pakistani man to determine if he was involved in the crime. The surveillance team noticed that he disappeared from the locations he used to frequent before he was discovered walking around the victim's house. Immediately, he was taken into custody to be investigated. The moment detectives told him the victim had died, police said he admitted that he was in a financial dispute with her and accidentally strangled her to death. First Lt. Nawaf Al-Bouq, spokesman for Jeddah police, said investigations are still in its preliminary stages. He said it was likely the Pakistani man convinced the victim that he wanted to reach an understanding with her, but the moment he entered the apartment he beat her up and strangled her to death. His will be referred to prosecution authorities once his case file is completed.
