US woman in Bali 'suitcase murder' freed from jail
An American woman convicted of helping to kill her mother on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali has walked free from prison
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An American woman convicted of helping to kill her mother on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali in 2014 walked free from prison Friday after serving seven years of a 10-year sentence and will be deported to the United States.
The badly beaten body of a wealthy Chicago socialite, Sheila von Wiese-Mack, 62, was found inside the trunk of a taxi parked at the upscale St. Regis Bali Resort in August 2014.
Heather Mack, who was almost 19 and a few weeks pregnant, and her then-21-year-old boyfriend, Tommy Schaefer, were arrested a day later after they were found at a hotel about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the St. Regis.
Police said the hotel’s CCTV showed the couple had argued with the girl’s mother in the lobby of the hotel shortly before the killing, which is alleged to have taken place inside a room in the hotel.
An Indonesian court sentenced Mack to 10 years in prison for assisting Schaefer in her mother’s murder and stuffing the body in a suitcase. Schaefer received an 18-year sentence.
Their daughter, Stella Schaefer, was born shortly before her parents were convicted in 2015. Under Indonesian law, she was allowed to live with her mother in her cell in Kerobokan female prison until she turned 2 years old, and Mack gave custody of her young daughter to an Australian woman until her release from prison.
Mack and her mother had a troubled relationship, with officials confirming police had been called to the family’s Oak Park, Illinois, home dozens of times.
In 2016, Robert Bibbs, a cousin of Schaefer, pleaded guilty to helping to plan the killing in exchange for $50,000 that Mack was expected to inherit, and was sentenced the next year to nine years in prison.
Mack, now 26, was escorted through a crush of reporters outside the Kerobokan Female Prison in Denpasar the Bali provincial capital, into a waiting car that took her to an immigration office near Bali’s international airport on Friday morning.
Wearing a mask, sunglasses and an immigration deportee's orange vest, she made no comment to reporters except to say, “Oh my God... you're insane!” from behind the car's window.
A few of friends of Mack were seen welcoming her outside the prison, including Oshar Putu Melody Suartama, an Australian woman married to a Balinese man, who has been raising Stella.
Mack's sentence was shortened by a total of 34 months due to reductions that are often granted to prisoners on major holidays because of their good conduct, including a six-month remission of sentence awarded during Indonesia's Independence Day in August, said Lili, the prison chief warden, who goes by a single name.
She said Mack will be placed in a detention room at the immigration office while waiting for a flight to the U.S.
Upon her release, Mack can under Indonesian law be reunited with her daughter, who is now 6.
But her Indonesian attorney, Yulius Benyamin Seran, has said earlier that Mack, who has not seen the little girl for about 20 months because authorities halted prison visits during the coronavirus pandemic, had asked Indonesian authorities to let the girl remain with her foster family to avoid media attention.
Under Indonesian law, a deported foreigner will be rejected entry to Indonesia up to a maximum six months.