Criminologist Adrianus Meliala from the University of Indonesia said when mutilation crimes occur, offenders sometimes copy cases that were extensively publicized in the media.

"That is why media outlets should not describe such cases in detail as it might trigger potential offenders to copy," he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Two mutilation crimes occurred in the Greater Jakarta area last week. Last Thursday, parts of a young woman's body were found in a hotel room in North Jakarta, while three days earlier the mutilated body of a boy was found in a box in Bekasi, West Java.

The mass media reported extensively on five mutilation cases in the Greater Jakarta area last year, while two mutilation cases were covered in both 2005 and 2006.

Three of the nine cases remain unsolved, with police yet to identify two of the victims.

However, police have already solved the latest mutilation case with the arrest of Zaki, 27, on Tuesday for allegedly murdering Atikah, 22.

According to police reports, Zaki mutilated Atikah's body to hide her identity.

Adrianus said in other countries, killers often mutilate the bodies of their victims to generate media coverage of their crimes.

However, he said in Indonesia offenders usually mutilate the bodies of their victims to cover up their crimes.

South Jakarta Police Chief Sr. Comr. Chairul Anwar told the Post that many mutilation crimes occur because the offender is mentally ill or has a grudge on the victim.

However, the executive director of the Human Behavior Center, Sartono Mukadis, said law enforcers should be careful when categorizing murderers as mentally ill.

"If killers are categorized as mentally ill, they receive lighter sentences, despite the fact they are actually responsible for violent murders," he said.

Adrianus and Sartono both said police could potentially establish motives behind mutilation cases by examining the types of cuts made on victims' bodies.

Adrianus said when a victim is found with his or her face mutilated, personal revenge may have been the killer's motive. However, when a victim's genitalia is mutilated, jealousy is often behind the murder, he added.

Sartono said when the cuts made to a victim's body are neat, the murder was most likely well planned by a professional killer.

On the other hand, random cuts indicate that the killer committed the crime spontaneously or accidentally, he added.

Three mutilation crimes have focused on children in the past two years, all of which are yet to be solved.

Adrianus said when the victim of a mutilation crime is a child, it could be said their murderer suffered from some form of sexually deviant behavior. Often the victims of these crimes are also sexually abused.

"The victims are often street children, who usually live in groups. The killers mutilate the children so other group members won't know about it," he said.

Sartono said murderers who focus on children are usually psychopaths who mutilate bodies to fulfill their personal fantasies and show off.

"After sexually abusing the victim, the offender panics for a while, but eventually becomes relaxed and enjoys it. Later, the killer may fantasize about the crime and abuse another victim," he said.

He said child predators often follow specific patterns and kill a victim every few months.

"They also love to show off their `masterpieces', throwing their victims' bodies on the side of the road so they are exposed," he said.

"I hope they allow psychologists or researchers to study these cases so as we know more about them in the future," he said. (dia)

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