The ministry did not elaborate on the motives of the crime, nor did it disclose the relation between the two women. “Police arrested the maid soon after the crime and after investigation the case was passed to the Shariah Court, which sentenced her to death. The verdict was later endorsed by the Court of Appeals,” the ministry said.

The crime took place about one and a half years ago when Sarona plotted to kill her 70-year-old sponsor. She waited until the departure of the Saudi woman’s son to work. While the woman was performing Dhuha prayer, the maid hit her head with the chopper several times. When the Saudi woman tried to run to another room, she followed her and stabbed her in the neck.

The maid, after washing the bloodstains from her hands, tried to run away. She left the crime scene in a cab, but the taxi driver felt something was wrong with the woman and handed her over to Al-Mansour police station. Police then launched an investigation and she confessed to the crime.

Indonesian officials say that around 70 percent of the 1.2 million Indonesians in Saudi Arabia are domestic staff.

In a separate development, the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution released a Saudi man on bail after police arrested him and his wife following the death of their Southeast Asian maid two months ago. However, police did not release the man’s wife, as the investigations of the woman were still ongoing.

Police found the maid’s body in the bathroom of a flat in Makkah. Investigators checked the maid’s body and found signs of torture. The maid’s sponsors were then charged with murdering her.

Investigations of the woman’s husband showed that he had no role in torturing and killing the maid. On the other hand, an interview with his wife showed she was not happy with her because of the maid’s maltreatment of her children.

However, the Saudi woman denied charges that she killed the maid, adding that no conflict had taken place between them on the day of her death.

She also told investigators that she was surprised at the maid’s absence and while searching for her she found her in the bathroom. She then informed her husband who then called the police. DNA tests showed that the maid was suffering from cancer and that the deadly disease had reached advanced stages.