Jakarta (ANTARA) - French man, Francois Abello Camille (FAC), alias Frans (65), suspected of sexually abusing 305 minors, died after attempting to kill himself in detention by entwining a wire around his neck, the police confirmed here, Monday.
Senior Commissioner Yusri Yunus, a spokesman of the Jakarta Metro Police, revealed that the police found FAC in his cell with a wire wound around his neck on Thursday (July 9).
"When a guard checked the cells, he found FAC with a wire wrapped around his neck. However, the wire was not found dangling (from the ceiling) anymore," Yunus pointed out.
Frans was taken to the Kramat Jati Police Hospital in East Jakarta for further medical treatment.
However, Frans was declared dead on Sunday at around 8 p.m. local time, Yunus noted. "After three days of medical treatment, he died last night at 8 p.m. local time," Yunus stated.
Yunus pointed out that the other detainees were unable to reach the wire set high on the ceiling, though Frans, a tall-statured man, managed to scale the bathroom walls and affix the wire onto the ceiling to commit suicide.
"Based on the reconstruction, we believe that the wire was positioned at a height that was impossible to reach," he explained.
Dr Umar Shahab, head of the health unit of the Jakarta Police Senior Commissioner, stated that Frans died of oxygen deficit to the brain and other vital organs after the supply was cut off owing to his attempted suicide.
"The x-ray result showed a neck fracture. The suicide attempt resulted in marrow edema and oxygen supply being cut to the brain and other vital organs," Shahab noted.
The Jakarta Metro Police's Criminal Investigation Unit arrested Frans in June 2020 at a hotel in Jakarta where they found two underage girls in his room.
Based on the police’s investigation, the suspect approached street children and lured them by offering them work as models.
Those consenting to sex with him would receive between Rp250 thousand to Rp1 million (US$17-70), whereas those not complying with his sexual demands would be beaten, slapped, and kicked by the suspect.
The suspect committed the crime at three different hotels in the capital city during the period from December 2109 to June 2020, but the police believe he had engaged in such acts long before that.
The police seized 21 pieces of clothing worn by the victims for making the video. It also confiscated a laptop containing the names of 305 victims along with their photographs and videos.
A total of 17 victims were identified in the investigation process during the course of the past three months.
Frans was charged with violating Article 81 of Law No.1 of 2016 on child protection, which carries a maximum punishment of 10-20 years of imprisonment and/or death sentence.
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