I

n the latest string of violence targeting foreigners, a Japanese woman was murdered at her rented house in the island's tourist haven of Kuta on Saturday night.

Her naked body was found on the floor with several stab wounds to the stomach, while her ankles were bound together with a cord.

"We could say with certainty that this woman was a victim of homicide," Bali Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Gde Sugianyar said Sunday.

"We found her body in an awful state with several stab wounds to the stomach," Sugianyar said.

The victim was identified as Hiromi Shimada, 41, a frequent visitor to Bali. She arrived in Bali on Nov. 30, 2009, on a tourist visa.

Her body was first found at 18.00 p.m. However, the local police were not notified until 19.30 P.M. The police have yet to disclose the reason for this delay.

Sugianyar said the police continued to investigate the scene and question residents in the area after the woman's body was discovered.

Detectives and specialists from the local police's criminal laboratory searched the victim's house on Jl. Sadasari 17, Kuta, for five hours.

They retrieved a knife and a used condom from the premise.

"At this point in the investigation we are still trying to establish the motive behind the murder as well as gather as much evidence as possible.

"We have yet to determine a suspect in this case," Sugianyar said, adding the police were working closely with the Japanese consulate.

According to the police's preliminary findings, the victim had regularly visited the resort island over the past 10 years.

During her stay on the island, she had married twice.

Detectives also found copies of bank transfers indicating the victim regularly received money from her grandmother in Japan.

The transfers ranged from Rp 15 to 20 million each.

"It seemed the victim wasn't financially independent and we have also received information that she led quite an expensive life during her stay in Bali," one of the detectives said.

Local news portal beritabali.com cited information provided by the victim's neighbors, which portrayed the victim as a depressed person who found solace in the company of liquor and young men.

The portal also claimed the victim would be deported on Jan. 9, 2009, due to legal problems with her visa.