Couple Accused Of Killing Girl's Mom In Bali May Face Death Penalty

Do they deserve to die?

Couple Accused Of Killing Girlfriend’s Mom In Bali Could Face Death Penalty

The American couple arrested in Bali over the slaying of the woman’s mother, Sheila von Wiese-Mack may be charged with premeditated murder according to police in Indonesia. The charge carries a maxiumum penalty of death.

According to AP reports:

Heather Mack, 19, and her boyfriend, Tommy Schaefer, 21, both from Chicago, were arrested in Bali’s Kuta area Wednesday, a day after the body of Sheila von Wiese-Mack was found stuffed inside a suitcase in the trunk of a taxi parked in front of the upscale St. Regis Bali Resort in the island’s exclusive Nusa Dua section.

An autopsy Saturday found that von Wiese-Mack, 62, died of asphyxiation from a broken nose bone resulting from a blunt blow, said Ida Bagus Putu Alit, head of forensics at Sanglah Hospital in Bali’s provincial capital of Denpasar. She also suffered from a broken neck, Alit said.

Mack and Schaefer were charged with murder on Friday. Col. Djoko Hari Utomo, chief of police for Denpasar, said Saturday that police had enough evidence to charge them with premeditated murder.

He reiterated that the couple was still refusing to talk to investigators without the presence of American lawyers.

“But that does not hamper our investigation. We have enough evidence, including CCTV and fingerprints,” Utomo said. “And I am inclined to charge them with premeditated murder.”

An FBI agent arrived Friday to help with the investigation, including on the couple’s possible involvement in criminal activity in the United States, Utomo said.

In the meantime there are unconfirmed reports that Heather Mack is claiming she’s pregnant… Would that help her case?

Pregnant or not, the results of the autopsy are pretty revealing:

The autopsy found that breaks in von Wiese-Mack’s neck and nose extended to her upper right and left jaws, causing respiratory disorders, Alit said. It also showed hand wounds suggesting she was trying to fend off an attack.

“We also found blood aspiration, which meant the victim was standing when assaulted,” Alit said. “The conclusion is that the victim suffocated from lack of oxygen because of influx of blood from the broken nose bone.”

Alit said von Wiese-Mack was believed to have died Tuesday morning.

“The victim was last spotted on CCTV at 3:45 a.m. (Tuesday), and three hours later she called receptionists asking to wake her up at 10 a.m.,” Alit said. “However, she did not respond when awakened.”

Meanwhile, Bali’s deputy police chief, Brig. Gen. Gusti Ngurah Raharja Subyakta, said psychological tests showed that there were no psychiatric disorders with the couple.

So no claiming insanity for these two. Do you think they’ll end up dying in Indonesia?

Ironically, we recently learned that Heather’s dad was a noted classical and jazz composer who also died at a hotel abroad. James Mack, who was also the director of music at Rockefeller Chapel at the University of Chicago, was 76 when he died in Greece in 2006 — also at a hotel, while on vacation.

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