By Saleem Mubarak
This woman is sitting in a comfortable coffee shop with her two close friends, having come there at the invitation of one of them.
She is completely carefree and enjoys the pleasant atmosphere, chatting with her friends. She takes a sip of her coffee, and as soon as it goes down her throat, her condition begins to deteriorate, and she suddenly experiences intense pain.
The question is, why did this happen to her? And who was behind all of this? You will find the answers to all these questions in today’s blog.
The Past Connection: A Turning Point in Their Friendship
The woman’s name is Meena, and two years ago, she was in a restaurant in Australia with her closest college friend, Jessica. They were talking about their lives when suddenly Jessica began discussing her boyfriend, saying she was unhappy with him and had numerous complaints.
After hearing the conversation, Meena advised her friend, “Your boyfriend is only causing you pain. You should break up with him immediately.” Meena’s advice seemed odd to Jessica; it was a direct solution to her relationship issue, but instead of offering helpful advice, Meena began criticizing her boyfriend. This made Jessica furious, and in her anger, she stood up and left the restaurant.
The Consequences of Anger: How One Argument Changed Everything
This moment turned out to be extremely significant, as this small incident created a new distance between the two friends, leading their lives down separate paths.
Jessica’s relationship with her boyfriend ended, and she fell into depression. Chaos started in her life as she was fired from her graphic design job and, as a result, turned to excessive drinking.
One day, so drunk that she lost control, she crashed her car into a retirement home, causing severe injuries and hospitalization. Even after that, she repeatedly visited the hospital because she had become so disillusioned with life that she tried to harm herself.
Diverging Paths: The Stark Contrast Between Two Friends
On the other hand, in stark contrast, Meena’s life was going smoothly. She was a successful woman with a flourishing career. She married her boyfriend, and their wedding was held in Bali. The interesting part was that Meena didn’t invite Jessica to her wedding.
Some time later, Jessica learned that Meena was living a very peaceful and successful life, which she couldn’t bear. Jessica thought she had played a major role in destroying Meena’s relationship with her boyfriend; if it wasn’t for Meena, they would still be together. She could not tolerate Meena living such a successful life; she felt that Meena didn’t deserve it. So, Jessica decided to ruin Meena’s life.
A Sinister Plan: Jessica’s Dark Intentions Unfold
As mentioned before, after Jessica angrily left the restaurant in Australia, several years passed, and both Jessica and Meena ended up living in Jakarta, Indonesia because they were both originally from there. This became the perfect opportunity for Jessica to carry out her plans as she hid other intentions in her heart.
Jessica contacts her old friend Meena seeking to implement her plan. She successfully reaches Meena and sends her a message saying, “It’s been a while since we’ve met. Let’s catch up and have some coffee.”
When Meena receives the message, she feels a bit suspicious because they hadn’t been in touch since the restaurant incident years ago; so she didn’t trust Jessica much anymore. However, she shakes off her doubts thinking that Jessica had invited her so sweetly for coffee. So, she agrees to meet and takes along another mutual friend.
The Meeting Setup: Crafting the Perfect Trap
A few hours before their meeting at the coffee shop, Jessica sends messages to Meena and their friend to ask about their drink orders because she planned to buy coffee for the whole group. Then about an hour and a half before the meeting, Jessica arrives at the coffee shop ahead of everyone else. She starts scanning the place to mentally note where the CCTV cameras are located.
After surveying the area, she leaves and buys shopping bags from another store before returning to the coffee shop. She places an order for drinks for the group and sits at a table placing the shopping bags in such a way that no one can see what she’s doing. Quietly, she adds 300 milligrams of cyanide to Meena’s coffee—a dose that is enough to kill someone.
The Poisonous Sip: A Life-Altering Moment
About an hour later, Meena and their mutual friend arrive. They exchange greetings and begin chatting. During this time, Meena takes a sip of the poisonous iced coffee. She immediately says that it tastes strange. Then within a minute, her head jerks back and her condition deteriorates rapidly; she falls to the floor.
The staff and other customers around her panic and rush to help; but despite the commotion, Jessica remains motionless in her seat. Amidst the chaos, Jessica suddenly has an idea and jumps up shouting that the coffee shop had tampered with her coffee—accusing them of adding something to it.
The Aftermath: Blame Shifting in Crisis
This is the moment when Jessica tries to shift the blame onto the coffee shop; however, the manager of the shop denies it by stating: “We didn’t add anything to her coffee.” The coffee shop manager is quick-witted; instead of throwing away the coffee cup containing evidence against Jessica’s actions—she keeps it safe for later examination.
Meanwhile, Meena is rushed to the hospital; but sadly it’s too late. Her condition had worsened too much for survival.
During the investigation it is concluded that she died from cyanide poisoning. Then about three days after Meena’s death, police find the iced coffee that the manager had saved. Upon examination they discover it contained 300 milligrams of cyanide—this crucial piece of evidence leads to Jessica’s arrest.
The Trial: A High-Profile Case Captivating Indonesia
A trial is held which lasts for five months; it becomes one of the biggest cases in Indonesia. News about this trial dominates media coverage while millions follow it—discussing whether Jessica is truly guilty or not.
Finally in light of all evidence presented during court proceedings—Jessica is found guilty and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
