Man allegedly beats stepdaughter to death to stop her from crying

DEPOK, Indonesia — A man in Sukamaju Baru subdistrict in Depok, West Java, has been arrested for allegedly beating his stepdaughter to death in their house on Friday.

Cimanggis Police head Comr. Suyud said the alleged incident was reported by a neighbor.

The witness said the man, Hari Kurniawan, 24, was seen slamming his 2-year-old stepdaughter to the floor of their rental house because the daughter would not stop crying.

His neighbor, Latifah, 57, said she witnessed the incident from outside the house while the 2-year-old’s mother, Eni, 18, was at work.

Not long after, Eni returned home. Latifah told her right away that her daughter had just been tortured by her husband. Eni then went inside and found her daughter dead.

Latifah and her husband reported the incident to the community head, who then filed a report to the Cimanggis Police.

“The police officers went to the scene and took the girl’s body to Kramat Jati Hospital. Meanwhile, the suspect was arrested right away and taken to the Cimanggis Police office,” Comr. Suyud said as quoted by wartakota.tribunnews.com.

Hari faces charges under Article 338 of the Criminal Code on murder and, if found guilty, could face a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment.