Ahmad Suradji (born 10 January 1949 - 10 July 2008) was a serial killer in Indonesia. Suradji, a cattle-breeder born on 10 January 1949, was executed July 10, 2008. He was also known as Nasib Kelewang, or by his alias Datuk. He admitted to killing 42 girls and women over a period of 11 years. His victims ranged in age from 11 to 30, and were strangled with a cable after being buried up to their waists in the ground as part of a ritual. Suradji was arrested on May 2, 1997, after bodies were discovered near his home on the outskirts of Medan, the capital of North Sumatra. He buried his victims in a sugarcane plantation near his home, with heads of the victims facing his house, which he believed would give him extra power.

He told police that he had a dream in 1988 in which his father's ghost told him to kill 70 women and drink their saliva, so that he could become a mystic healer. As a sorcerer or dukun, women came to him for spiritual advice or on making themselves more beautiful or richer. His three wives—all sisters—were also arrested for assisting in the murders and helping to hide the bodies. One of his wives, Tumini, was tried as his accomplice. The trial began on December 11, 1997, with a 363-page charge against him, and although Suradji maintained his innocence, he was found guilty on April 27, 1998 by a three-judge panel in Lubuk Pakam. He was sentenced to death by firing squad and executed on July 10, 2008.

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Indonesian Sorcerer Executed

NewsSky.com

July 11, 2008

An Indonesian man convicted of killing 42 women and girls in ritual slayings that he hoped would bring him magical powers has been executed.

Ahmad Suradji, 57, was killed by firing squad despite a last minute appeal from human-rights group Amnesty International.

Bonaventura Nainggolan, spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, said: "He appeared resigned to his fate.

"His final wish was to see his wife. We fulfilled this."

He added: "He pretended to be a shaman who could heal any kind of disease. If someone asked to be healed, both their possessions and their lives were taken."

Suradji lured his female victims to a sugarcane field near his home in western Indonesia.

He then buried them up to the waist and strangled them before reburying their bodies with the heads pointing toward his house.

Suradji also drank their saliva, believing it would enhance his powers.

The serial killer was arrested in May 1997 following the discovery of a body in the field in Lubukpakan, a village in North Sumatra province.

Dozens of other corpses were later found nearby.

A district court found the sorcerer guilty a year later of killing 42 women and girls, between the ages 11 and 30, over an 11-year period.

Many Indonesians believe in witchcraft and Suradji claimed he had the power to influence people's futures.

The victims were believed to have been seeking his help in making their husbands or boyfriends faithful.

Suradji's wife, Tumini, was also sentenced to death for assisting with the murders, but her sentence was later reduced to life in prison.

Indonesian sorcerer go on trial

December 22, 1997

In Indonesia, a traditional sorcerer accused of killing forty-two women is due to go on trial in the city of Medan today.

The man, Ahmad Suradji, was arrested in April when the police began digging up the bodies of victims near his house.

The police said many had been prostitutes who sought his help to become more attractive to men.

Officials said the sorcerer had admitted to the killings.

The BBC correspondent in Jakarta says that, if found guilty, Ahmad Suradji will rank as one of the worst serial killers this century.

Indonesian sorcerer on trial

December 23, 1997

A traditional sorcerer has gone on trial in the Indonesian city of Medan, accused of killing 42 women.

The man, Ahmad Suradji, was arrested in April when the police began digging up the bodies of victims near his house.

Officials say the sorcerer had admitted killing the women in a black magic ritual to increase his magical powers.

According to police, the sorcerer had a dream nine years ago in which the ghost of his father told him to kill 70 women and drink their saliva.

The victims were women who came to him to ask for supernatural help in making themselves richer or more attractive.

It is thought his macabre activities escaped detection because the women were too embarrassed to tell friends and family where they were going.

The courtroom in Medan was packed with more than 100 people as the trial began.

If found guilty, the man faces the death penalty.

The BBC correspondent in Indonesia says mystical powers are widely trusted there, and sorcerers can be found even in Jakarta's modern shopping centres.

Indonesian sorcerer faces 42 murder charges

December 24, 1997

A traditional sorcerer accused of killing 42 women has gone on trial near the Indonesian city of Medan. One of his three wives is also being tried as an accomplice. The sorcerer, Ahmad Suradji, also known as Nasib Kelewang, was arrested in April after the body of a woman was found near his house. Jonathan Head sent this report from the Indonesian capital, Jakarta:

The Indonesian police believe they have a clear-cut case against Ahmad Suradji. They say he has admitted to killing all 42 of the women whose bodies were dug up around his house in an attempt to increase his magical powers.

According to the police, the sorcerer had a dream nine years ago in which the ghost of his father told him to kill 70 women and drink their saliva. The victims were women who came to him to ask for supernatural help in making themselves richer or more attractive.

It's thought his macabre activities escaped detection because the women were too embarrassed to tell friends and family where they were going. The case received extensive publicity when the bodies were first discovered in May but since then coverage has been restricted to a few lurid articles in tabloid magazines about the sorcerer's sex life.

If he's found guilty, Ahmad Suradji will rank as one of the worst serial killers this century but journalists here say that many Indonesians view his behaviour with a degree of tolerance because he is a traditional sorcerer. Mystical powers are widely believed in throughout Indonesia.

There are even sorcerers offering their services in Jakarta's modern shopping centres. People who consult them say they accept there is always a risk when dabbling with the supernatural.

Indonesian sorcerer sentenced to death

Monday, 27 April, 1998

Ahmad Suradji was a well-respected 48 year-old witch doctor in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, many trusted the man for guidance on matters such as love and money and health. However when the doctor was arrested by police for the murders of several local women, people began to wonder about the medicine man's true powers.

Suradji claimed that he would bury young women in the sands near his sugarcane plantation. Suradji would then strangled the terrified women and drink the saliva that dribbled from their mouths.

The ritual supposedly increased the man's powers so he could help clients heal all manner of problems, from poverty to illness to love. After the sacrifical ceremony was completed Suradji would dig the dead bodies out of their murderous trench and rebury them closer to his house. All of the victims were buried in a specific pattern facing the witch-doctor's house.

Suradji may have gotten away with the murders for many more years had it not been the vigilance of one father, whose suspicions ended in the witch-doctor's arrest on May 2, 1997 and that of his three wives, who are sisters.

After the father of one of the victims reported the disappearance of his daughter who went to see Ahmad the police set eyes on him. The police found the body of one of the victims in a field close to his house. The police began a thorough search of the plantation and found 41 additional bodies.

Suradji confessed to the murders of 16 women over a five-year period, hoping that once police had found that many buried superficially around the property that they may stop looking, however the found evidence of at least 25 women, including clothing and jewelery and watches. So with the mounting evidence Suradji changed his story. He told police that over eleven years he had murdered 42 women, ranging in ages from 11 years old to 30. Many of the victims had been prostitutes as well and so their disappearance was not immediately noticed. However since 42 bodies have now been exhumed another 80 families have come forward with reports of missing women, giving rise to fear that perhaps there is many more victims to be found.

Most of the women who had hired the doctor had required him to cast magic spells to ensure the faithfulness of their husbands or boyfriends. Neighbors said that many women sought the sorcerer's help believing they would make themselves richer, healthier and more sexually attractive to men.

Suradji's method was to charge each victim according to their needs the price was usually around $300. Then he would take them to a sugarcane plantation near his home and bury them in the ground up to their waist, he would tell the women it was a part of his ritual. Once in the ground he strangled each woman with electrical cable. Then he drank their saliva, undressed their corpse and reburied them with their heads pointing to his home so to enhance his magical powers.

According to Suradji he had a dream in which the ghost of his father told him to kill 70 women and drink their saliva so he could become a "dukan", or mystic healer, he said.

During their trials, both Suradji and his senior wife Tumini denied the slayings. They claimed they confessed under torture by the police. However their forced confession defence fell on deaf ears and on April 27, 1998, the witch-doctor was found guilty by the three-judge panel of Indonesia's worst killing spree. Suradji has been sentenced to death by firing squad. Those in court cheered as the sentence was read out.

Bibliography:
Yahoo World News / Daily Telegraph

SURADJI, Ahmad

An Indonesian cattle breeder and self-styled sorcerer, Ahmad Suradji was 36 years old in 1986 when his late father appeared to him in a dream, commanding him to increase his occult powers by killing 70 women in black magic rituals.  According to his later confessions, Suradji-aka Nasib Kelawang or Datuk Mariniggi wasted no time in following the old mans orders.

lt was easy enough to find victims, since local women often visited his home outside Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, to purchase love charms and similar items.  Each sacrifice followed the same pattern: after charging his victim a fee that ranged from $200 to $400, Suradji led the unsuspecting female to a nearby sugar plantation, where he dug a hole and buried her up to the waist, supposedly as part of a ritual designed to ensure her lover's fidelity.  Once the victim was effectively immobilized, Suradji then strangled her with an electric cord, drank the victim's saliva, stripped the corpse, and buried ¡t with the head pointed toward his home to channel the spirit's mystical powers. lf all else failed and willing customers tan short, Suradji would hire prostitutas and murder them instead.

Suradji was still short of his 70-victim goal on April 28, 1997, when three bodies were found on the plantation and police arrested him for questioning.  In custody, he initially confessed to killing 16 victims over the past five years, but a search of his home turned up clothing and personal items linked to 25 missing women, and Suradji finally confessed to a total of 42 murders spanning 11 years.  His three wives, all sisters, were jailed as accomplices, but two were later released, with only the oldest-38-year-old Tumini-charged after confessing her role in the crimes.

Police unearthed 40 corpses on the plantation, victims ranging in age from 12 to 30 years, and while some 80 local families had reported missing females during the span of Suradji's rampage, Ahmad and Tumini were charged with only 42 counts of murder when their trial began on December 21, 1997.  By that time, both defendants had recanted their confessions, claiming they were tortured by police, but no denials could explain the corpses unearthed near Suradji's home. 

On April 27, 1998, Suradji was convicted and sentenced to death by firing squad.  Tumini was also convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.  Suradji's lawyers have announced that they will appeal his conviction.

Michael Newton - An Encyclopedia of Modern Serial Killers - Hunting Humans

Ahmad Suradji

In Indonesia, consulting mystic doctors is a way of living. A lot of people visit the doctors because they think the doctors have paranormal powers, and ask them for medical and spiritual advise. A lot of woman sought the doctor's help believing they would make themselves richer, healthier and more sexually attractive to their husbands or boyfriends.

Speaking to reporters in Medan, Suradji seemed less perturbed by the prospect of being executed than by his incomplete agenda. "The target was 70" he admitted.

Datuk

Name: Ahmad Suradji
a.k.a: Nasib Kelewang or Datuk Maringgi
Date of birth: 1949
Date of death: April 27, 1998
Cause of death: Executed by a firing squad
Killings: 42
Location: Indonesia
Killing spree: 1986 – 1997

In Indonesia, consulting mystic doctors is a way of living. A lot of people visit the doctors because they think the doctors have paranormal powers, and ask them for medical and spiritual advise. A lot of woman sought the doctor's help believing they would make themselves richer, healthier and more sexually attractive to their husbands or boyfriends.

Such a doctor was Ahmad Suradji, also known as Nasib Kelewang or Datuk Maringgi. Suradji was a well-respected witch doctor in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, many trusted the man for guidance on matters such as love and money and health. However, when a girl who had visited Suradji didn't return, the father reported the disappearance of his daughter. When the police went to Suradji's house, they found the body of one of the victims in a field close to his house.

A search of Ahmad's property revealed clothes and watches belonging to 25 missing women. After the police arrested Suradji on May 2, 1997, he initially confessed the killing of 16 women over a five-year period. But under further questioning, he confessed to have killed 42 woman, ranging in ages from 11 to 30 years, over a period of 11 years. Ahmad's three wives, all sisters, were also arrested for helping him commit the murders and hide the corpses. The oldest wife, Tumini, was tried as his accomplice in his 11-year rampage.

Police believe the victims may have been too embarrassed to tell their families of their seeking the sorcerer's help so their disappearances were not linked to him. A large amount of them were also prostitutes.

Suradji's methode of killing was to charge each victim according to their needs. The price was usually between $200 and $400. After that, he would take them to a sugarcane plantation near his home and bury them in the ground up to their waist as part of a ritual. Once in the ground he strangled each woman with electrical cable. Then he drank their saliva, undressed their corpses and reburied them with their heads pointing to his home so to enhance his magical powers. Suradji told police that nine years ago he had a dream in which the ghost of his father told him to kill 70 women and drink their saliva .

After the unearthing of the 40 corpses, the police asked local residents to report missing female familie members. About 80 families in the area have reported relatives missing, so it is posible that Ahmad Suradji may have killed even more woman.

During their trials both Suradji and Tumini denied the slayings, saying they confessed because they could no longer bear torture by interrogators. On April 27, 1998, an Indonesian court in North Sumatra found the sorcerer guilty of Indonesia's worst killing spree. As the last of the 42 bodies was being unearthed, Suradji was sentenced to death by firing squad.

His wife Tumini is also sentenced to death for her part in the killings. The court found that she had deliberately helped him in the killings.

The other two wifes has left the village.

The reaction in the rest of Indonesia is relatively muted. The beginning of the trial went unreported in Indonesia's national press. People say it is because they are used to going for help to "paranormals", and familiar with things going wrong.

Consulting mystics is a way of life in Indonesia, and they are reputed to have huge sexual appetites. There have been other cases of mystics molesting and even raping their clients.

"The case of Achmad Suradji is an aberration," says a traditional healer, who is visited by many for his supposedly magic powers.

"If you don't have the right background, the right education, or the right teacher, then things could go badly wrong."

Some mystics say they can arrange to have people killed by magic powers.

But people in Mr Suradji's village say that the allegations about him have put them off from seeing mystics, and that they will now stay clear of traditional sorcery.

As one of Mr Suradji's neighbours says, they feel betrayed by a man who was once a respected member of the community.

Speaking to reporters in Medan, Suradji seemed less perturbed by the prospect of being executed than by his incomplete agenda. "The target was 70" he admitted.

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