Topline
Heather Mack was arrested by federal agents on conspiracy charges after she landed in the U.S. on Wednesday, following her release from prison in Indonesia, where she served seven years for assisting her boyfriend with her mother’s murder in a Bali hotel.
Heather Mack is escorted by Immigration guards to the immigration detention house in Jimbaran, on ... [+]
Key Facts
Federal agents arrested Mack, 26, as she stepped off of a plane at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport on two counts of conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country and one obstruction of justice charge, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Mack allegedly helped her boyfriend, Tommy Schaefer, kill Sheila von Wiese-Mack and stuff her body into a suitcase at the St. Regis Bali Resort in 2014.
Schaefer, who remains in prison in Indonesia, was also charged with the same counts, which carry a maximum of life in prison if convicted.
The indictment for Mack and Schaefer was filed under seal in 2017, and a magistrate judge issued arrest warrants for the pair during the same year, according to court documents.
The Chicago FBI office had no comment and Mack’s attorney, Brian Claypool, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes.
Key Background
Mack and her mother, a wealthy Chicago socialite, flew to Bali in 2014. A few days into their vacation, Wiese-Mack’s body was found in a suitcase that had been left in the trunk of a taxi parked in front of the resort. Indonesian officials arrested Mack, who was 19 and pregnant at the time, and Schaefer one day later. Their daughter, Stella Schaefer, was born just before the pair were convicted in Indonesia. In 2015, Indonesian officials sentenced Tommy Schaefer to 18 years in prison for the murder, and Mack to 10 years in prison for assisting. Under Indonesian state law, Stella was allowed to live with her mother in her cell until she was 2, after which Mack gave custody of her daughter to an Australian woman until her release from prison. Mack had not seen her child for over 20 months prior to her release due to Covid-19 restrictions.
Chief Critic
Brian Claypool, Mack’s attorney, told the Tribune that he thinks federal charges were filed in 2017 after federal agents decided they weren’t happy with Mack’s 10-year sentence in Indonesia. “It’s all sour grapes, all high drama and no legal traction,” he said. “We will be filing a motion to get all these charges thrown out.”
Surprising Fact
Mack’s sentence was shortened by 34 months due to reductions that are often handed out to prisoners on major holidays in Indonesia for good conduct. The chief prison warden where Mack served her sentence Lili, who only goes by one name, told the Associated Press that Mack was shocked when she was told she would be leaving early. “Heather used to say that prison has changed her life a lot, she loves Indonesia and the people who have surrounded her all these years,” Lili said. “She will miss us so much and so do we here.” Mack stayed at an immigrant detention center for four days before she was deported back to the U.S.
Further Reading
Heather Mack, boyfriend indicted on federal conspiracy and obstruction of justice charges in Chicago stemming from murder of her mother (The Chicago Tribune)
Indonesia deports Chicago woman who helped kill mother (The Associated Press)