Police Have Arrested The Perpetrator Of The Murder Of A Woman In The Umbulharjo Inn Room

Yogyakarta Police Chief Kombes Eva Guna Pandia (center) during a press conference on the case of the murder of a woman at an inn at the Yogyakarta Police Headquarters, Thursday (14/8/2025). BETWEEN/Luqman Hakim

Yogyakarta City Police arrested the perpetrator of the murder of a woman with the initials AM (39) in an inn room in the Umbulharjo area, Yogyakarta City.

Yogyakarta Police Chief Kombes Eva Guna Pandia said the perpetrator with the initials NRE (27), a resident of Gedangsari, Gunung Kidul Regency, was arrested in the Umbulharjo area on Wednesday (13/8) night, shortly after the incident.

"The perpetrator killed the victim by smothering him with a pillow," Eva said as quoted by ANTARA, Thursday, August 14.

Based on the chronology, the perpetrators of NRE and victim AM met at an inn in the Umbulharjo area, Yogyakarta City, on Wednesday (13/8) morning at around 10.00 WIB and checked in together, then entered the room.

At around 11.30 WIB, the perpetrator left the room, handed over the key, and took the KTP at the inn reception with the excuse of returning, while the victim was still resting.

At 16.00 WIB, the inn officer who was about to clean the room found the victim still asleep. Because for four hours he did not move, the inn officer suspected and called his colleague. After being examined, the victim is thought to have died.

The incident was reported to the Umbulharjo Sector Police who then went to the location with the Yogyakarta Police Satreskrim team to process the crime scene and examine witnesses.

Based on the results of the examination of the victim's body at the Bhayangkara Polda DIY Hospital, Eva said, it was found that there were sliding abrasions on the left neck due to blunt force violence.

On the victim's throat there was a smooth reddish white foam, a reddish mucus membrane, and signs of weakness.

"The cause of death is the obstruction of the upper airway which causes the victim to run out of breath," said the Police Chief.

Referring to the results of the investigation, he said the perpetrator's actions were triggered by jealousy after seeing the victim receiving video calls many times from a man on his cellphone. "No victim's belongings were taken," he added.

The NRE perpetrator smothered the victim while the victim was sleeping on the bed. After the victim's body did not move, the perpetrator tried to make the victim aware by touching the cheek and washing his face with water, but there was no response.

The perpetrator then cleaned the pillowcases used to smother the victim before leaving the inn.

NREyang has been named a murder suspect and is known to work in a food stall and has had an illicit relationship with the victim who has been married after getting acquainted via TikTok social media since 2023.

The illicit relationship was interrupted because the victim's family knew, but was re-established in 2025 until this incident occurred.

"In 2025, the victim contacted the perpetrator again so that there was a relationship several more times," said Eva.

For his actions, the suspect NRE was charged with Article 338 of the Criminal Code (KUHP) regarding the confiscation of someone's life intentionally with a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.