By Enda Curran
HONG KONG--A 29-year-old British banker charged with murdering
two Indonesian women who were found dead in his apartment, with one
body hidden in a suitcase, had his case adjourned until Nov. 24 to
allow him to undergo psychiatric assessments.
Rurik Jutting, who until recently was employed by Bank of
America Merrill Lynch, was charged last week with two counts of
murder after he called police to his Hong Kong apartment early on
Nov. 1, leading to the discovery of two bodies. The first victim,
Sumarti Ningsih, died on Oct. 27, according to police. The victim
had cuts on her neck and one of her buttocks, according to a police
statement. The second victim, Seneng Mujiasih, died on Nov. 1 and
also had neck injuries. She was discovered in a suitcase on the
apartment's balcony. A knife was seized at the scene, according to
police.
In a brief hearing Monday, Mr. Jutting appeared before the court
where the judge granted an additional two weeks for the psychiatric
analysis to take place.
Wearing what appeared to be the same clothes he wore at his
first court appearance on Nov. 3, Mr. Jutting had on a black
T-shirt with "New York" emblazoned on the front and back and
"Champion" on the shirt's front.
The unshaven Mr. Jutting nodded at his lawyer and appeared calm.
He spoke only briefly when he told the judge he understood the
proceedings. He remains in custody in prison facilities after last
week objecting to being detained by police.
Mr. Jutting hasn't entered a plea and his lawyer said the
defendant may still cooperate in a planned police reconstruction of
the alleged murders, which had been scheduled for Nov. 7 but didn't
happen because Mr. Jutting didn't give consent. Reconstructions of
crimes for use in court prosecutions are common in Hong Kong.
"My client's stance is no reconstruction yet, not no
reconstruction," his lawyer Timothy Parker told the court.
Mr. Jutting--whose full name is Rurik George Caton Jutting,
according to a U.K. regulatory filing--moved to Bank of America
Merrill Lynch's Hong Kong operation in 2013, having worked for
three years in the London offices. He previously worked for
Barclays, also in London, according to people familiar with the
matter.
A LinkedIn profile that appears to belong to Mr. Jutting still
said he was employed as a member of Bank of America Merrill Lynch's
structured equity finance and trading team in Asia. Court documents
list Mr. Jutting as a banker at the U.S. lender.
A spokesman for Bank of America Merrill Lynch has said that the
bank previously had an employee by that name. According to Hong
Kong regulatory filings, Mr. Jutting had one of his securities
trading permits canceled on Oct. 27, the day that he allegedly
killed the first of the two women. On Oct. 28, Mr. Jutting's other
trading license was canceled. There is no suggestion the move to
cancel the licenses was linked to the alleged crimes.
Described by former colleagues and friends as a high-performing
student and keen athlete, Mr. Jutting attended the private
Winchester College in England. He later attended the University of
Cambridge, where he studied history and law and was an active
rower.
Write to Enda Curran at enda.curran@wsj.com
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