MS Unsolved: The senseless murder of student Dini Haryati
MS Unsolved is a series that hopes to raise awareness of cold cases in Singapore and generate new leads. If you have any information on the cases, reach out to MS News or the police.
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On the morning of 6 Jan 1998, the body of missing 19-year-old Indonesian student Dini Haryati was found in Woodlands. She had disappeared two days prior on 4 Jan.
Ms Dini was in a semi-dressed state, and there were bruises on her neck, forehead, and abdomen.
At the time, police ruled that she had been sexually assaulted and murdered while returning home from her workplace at night.
The murder of Ms Dini instilled fear among many residents in the area, with urgent calls to enhance safety for women.
After years of unsuccessful efforts to locate her murderer, the cold case was revisited in January 2021. Here’s what is known so far about the case.
She interned at the Albert Court Hotel
Born into an affluent family in Indonesia, Ms Dini was recognised as a hardworking and gifted student with many talents.
She excelled in martial arts — with black belts in karate and taekwondo — and also had a knack for languages and Indonesian cultural dance.
Her uncle also described her as a very obedient and independent child.
Source: Crime Library Singapore on Facebook
Ms Dini was a second-year student at Bandung Tourism College and moved to Singapore for her internship at the Albert Court Hotel in Albert Street.
She rented a flat with two friends in Block 357, Woodlands Avenue 5, just a 200-metre walk from Woodlands MRT station.
On 4 Jan 1998, Ms Dini left her workplace at around 11pm. This was the last time she was seen alive.
Source: Crime Library Singapore on Facebook
Ms Dini failed to return to her room that night but was only reported missing when she did not show up for work at the hotel on 6 Jan.
Found dead in bushes near her residence in Woodlands
Her body was found that same morning by a gardener who was cutting grass near the Woodlands MRT station. The discovery was subsequently reported to the police.
When the police arrived at the scene, they noticed that the victim was clothed in just a white shirt, with her lower body uncovered. They found her black pants, underwear, and shoes nearby.
Source: Crime Library Singapore on Facebook
Additionally, she had bruises on her face, neck, and abdomen. A police spokesperson later declared that Ms Dini had died from a fractured skull after being struck with a blunt object.
According to the forensic report, Ms Dini was also sexually assaulted and strangled. No weapons were found at the scene.
Attacked by rapist while walking outside MRT station
Investigations by police revealed that Ms Dini had boarded a bus from her workplace before taking the train to Woodlands station.
It’s believed that her attacker stalked her, and waited for the opportunity to strike.
The opportunity arose when Ms Dini was walking through a dimly lit pathway outside Woodlands MRT station, which was reportedly used by many residents.
She was then pulled into the nearby bushes where she was raped and murdered.
Extensive police investigations included questioning 300 foreign workers, however, no suspects emerged.
The murder of Ms Dini sparked fear among Woodlands residents, among them, Ng Lip Chuan, who shared her concerns with The Straits Times (ST).
She urged for more lights to be set up along the path to prevent future tragedies.
“My flat overlooks the Woodlands MRT station. I have often thought of the dimly lit area as a potentially dangerous area, especially for young girls who return home late,” said the resident.
As such, she always picked up her two daughters from the station when they returned home late at night.
“I wish to suggest to the town council to brighten up the area with more lights and have more frequent police patrols there,” said the concerned resident.
She was one week away from completing her training in Singapore
Ms Dini’s father, Mr Ustam Dinata, a director of operations with Bank Bukopin in Jakarta, hurriedly caught a flight to Singapore after being informed of his daughter’s death.
The devastated father last saw his daughter in September.
During his visit to Singapore, Mr Ustam talked to Ms Dini about safety but the latter had assured him, stating that she had a black belt in martial arts.
Source: Singaporean Crimewatch 1998
As it turned out, Ms Dini had just one week remaining before completing her training in Singapore.
The deceased had also planned to return to Indonesia to celebrate Hari Raya with her family.
Mr Ustam recalled their conversation on the phone, saying that she had invited some friends over as well.
Additionally, he revealed that she had dreams to pursue a degree in Sydney, Australia after finishing college.
Ms Dini kept in touch with her identical twin sister and two elder brothers over the phone and also wrote them letters weekly.
“When I went to Dini’s flat to clear up her belongings, I found an unopened letter from her sister,” said Mr Ustam.
“Tears just came to my eyes. Dini will never know what her sister wanted to say to her.”
Father suspected there was more than one attacker
The distraught father had suspicions that Ms Dini was attacked by more than one person, believing that she would have been able to defend herself otherwise.
However, there was no confirmation from the police on the matter.
Ms Dini’s death received an outpouring of support and also concern for other young foreign students in Singapore.
“We hope that, in future, the employers would consider arranging transport home for these people if they are working the late shift, to prevent such an incident from happening again,” said Mr Trijono Marjono, a counsellor with the Indonesian embassy.
Three months after Ms Dini’s murder, the Singaporean crime show Crimewatch re-enacted the case, broadcasting it on television in April.
The episode about her killing featured a public appeal for information or witnesses.
More rape cases emerged after the death of Dini Haryati
In 2000, two years after the death of Ms Dini, 29-year-old financial executive Linda Chua was attacked by a rapist while jogging, at Bukit Batok Nature Park.
The assailant had also brutally beaten her, and she eventually succumbed to her injuries in hospital after eight days.
Her attacker was also never identified or arrested.
In response to Ms Chua’s death, Ms Dini’s cousin told the press how heartbreaking it was to hear that another young woman had met the same tragic end.
Three years later, a 23-year-old woman was jogging alone at MacRitchie Reservoir when she was attacked. Luckily, she escaped with her life after her assailant fled when passers-by appeared.
The assault led to improved security around the reservoir.
The theory emerged that the rapist behind the MacRitchie Reservoir attack was the same person who had killed Ms Dini and Ms Chua.
However, as with those two murders, the assailant was never caught, even though the police released a sketch of him.
Hope for the cold case of Dini Haryati
In January 2021, the Dini Haryati rape-murder case was revisited when a public appeal was made to reopen the investigation into the unsolved murder of 7-year-old schoolgirl Lim Shiow Rong, who was raped and killed by an unknown person believed to be a friend of her father.
The appeal was spurred by the arrest of a suspect in the previously cold case of Felicia Teo, who was missing for 13 years.
The arrest of Felicia Teo’s killer sparked hope that the re-investigation and resolution of other cold cases could follow.
The cases included the 2000 murder of Linda Chua and the 1985 rape-murder of Winnifred Teo, an 18-year-old Catholic JC student, whose body was found abandoned in thick undergrowth near Holland Road.
So far, the murderer of Ms Dini Haryati has yet to be identified.
The unsolved murder of 7-year-old Lim Shiow Rong who vanished after meeting her father’s ‘friend’
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Featured image adapted from Singaporean Crimewatch 1998 and Crime Library Singapore on Facebook.
