Jakarta A man convicted of killing 42 women and girls in western Indonesia in ritual deaths that he hoped would bring him magical powers will be executed soon.

Police say that Ahmad Suradji, 57, lured women to a sugar cane field near his home, buried them up to the waist, and then strangled them before reburying their bodies with the heads pointing toward his house.

Suradji was arrested in May 1997 after the discovery of a body in the field in Lubukpakan, a village in North Sumatra province. Dozens of other corpses were later found nearby. A district court found the sorcerer guilty a year later of killing 42 women and girls, between the ages of 11 and 30, over an 11-year period. He was sentenced to death.

“We have received formal notification that Suradji will soon be executed,” his lawyer said, adding that he had not been informed of the date. Suradji has been placed in isolation, indicating that it could occur within days. “I met him this morning, and I think that was our last meeting,” the lawyer said. (AP)

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