Mirna’s life tragically ended with a cup of Vietnamese iced coffee.
The iced coffee murder of Wayan Mirna Salihin is a story of betrayal, justice, and media frenzy. In 2016, Mirna, a 27-year-old Indonesian woman, died after sipping a cyanide-laced Vietnamese iced coffee at a Jakarta café. The prime suspect? Her former roommate and best friend: Jessica Wongso.
With an Indonesian Supreme Court verdict sealing Wongso’s 20-year sentence, her 2024 parole reignited global debates. Fueled by Netflix’s Ice Cold: Murder, Coffee and Jessica Wongso—about whether justice was truly served.
The Fatal Meeting: A Girls’ Coffee Date Gone Wrong
On January 6, 2016, Mirna, Jessica, and another friend met at Olivier Café in Jakarta’s Grand Indonesia mall. Jessica Wongso ordered a Vietnamese iced coffee for Mirna, who collapsed within minutes of drinking it. She was convulsing and foaming at the mouth before dying en route to the hospital.
The case was even more tragic because Mirna was a newlywed, and the suspicious circumstances around the young and beautiful woman created a media frenzy. Just after 2 months of marriage, her husband Arief Soemarko had to face the tragic event.
“I wish for justice to be served,” Arief stated. He also supported Mirna’s family’s demands for a death sentence for Jessica.
The media attention intensified when autopsies confirmed cyanide poisoning, but the investigation quickly spiraled into controversy. There were three key clues that ultimately convicted Jessica Wongso: the CCTV video, toxicological lab result, and the nature of the iced coffee drink.
The CCTV footage showed Wongso arriving early, adjusting shopping bags to block views of the coffee cup. Prosecutors argued this was premeditation; the defense called it coincidence.
Meanwhile, while initial toxicology tests ound no cyanide in the coffee cup, but traces were later detected in Mirna’s stomach. Skeptics questioned lab procedures and possible contamination.
The Vietnamese iced coffee drink was also said to be a factor. Experts testified that the drink’s temperature slowed cyanide absorption, delaying symptoms.
From Best Friends to Frenemies?
Wayan Mirna Salihin was born as twins in 1988. For her university studies, she moved to Australia. She was a student at Billy Blue College of Design.
Mirna and Jessica met while studying in Sydney, bonding as international students from the same country. Their friendship fractured when Mirna criticized Wongso’s relationship with an abusive Australian partner.
During investigation, the Australian police also provided Jessica Wongso’s police records. While she had not committed any crimes, the record contains a restraining order from an ex-boyfriend and claims of harassment.
Witnesses claimed Wongso seethed with resentment from Mirna’s treatment, though no concrete evidence tied this to murder.
Prosecutors painted Wongso as vengeful, alleging she plotted for months. Yet, no proof of cyanide procurement surfaced. The defense countered that the case relied on circumstantial evidence and public pressure to convict.
The Trial: Media Circus and Judicial Scrutiny
Wongso’s televised trial became a national spectacle, blending legal drama with tabloid sensationalism. Prosecutors leaned heavily on the ice cold coffee theory, arguing its temperature masked the poison’s bitter taste and delayed its effects. They also weaponized Wongso’s mental health history, portraying her as an emotionless schemer.
The defense, meanwhile, highlighted glaring gaps in the case: missing CCTV footage, unreliable toxicology timelines, and the absence of a clear motive.
After her 2016 conviction, appeals reached Indonesia’s Supreme Court, which upheld the 20-year sentence despite acknowledging investigative shortcomings. Critics condemned the verdict, citing Indonesia’s judge-driven legal system—where juries play no role—as inherently vulnerable to bias and public pressure.
Netflix’s Ice Cold Documentary: Bonus Videos and New Doubts
The 2023 Netflix documentary Ice Cold: Murder, Coffee and Jessica Wongso rekindled global interest. It featured unseen interrogation clips where police pressured Wongso, sparking allegations of coercion.
Forensic deep dives showed experts who questioned why cyanide wasn’t found in the coffee cup and highlighted autopsy inconsistencies.
Additionally, the film suggested cultural critique into Indonesia’s patriarchal judiciary. It implied that such justice system scapegoated Wongso to appease public outrage.
Mirna’s family condemned the documentary as “biased,” while supporters hailed it as a exposĂ© of systemic flaws. At the helm of this condemnation is Mirna’s father, Edi Darmawan Salihin. In a later interview, Edi claimed that he had more CCTV evidence. The aforementioned evidence was not conclusive.
Edi Salihin also remarried in 2019. His younger wife, Tiara Agnesia, passed away on March 13th, 2023. Indonesian netizens were discussing the news due to the coincidental circumstances.
Parole, Protests, and the Supreme Court’s Shadow
In August 2024, Jessica Wongso was released on parole after serving eight years of her sentence, a decision citing “exemplary behavior” and prison overcrowding. Her release sparked protests, with Mirna’s father declaring it a “betrayal of justice.”
Wongso remains under strict surveillance until 2032 but has vowed to pursue a judicial review, leveraging newfound attention from the Netflix documentary to challenge her conviction.
Legal experts note that Indonesia’s Supreme Court rarely overturns verdicts, prioritizing judicial finality over lingering doubts. However, Wongso’s legal team hopes international scrutiny and alleged “new evidence” uncovered in Ice Cold could force a unprecedented re-examination of the case.
Unresolved Mysteries: Lingering Questions in an Ice Cold Case
Decades later, the iced coffee murder remains riddled with unanswered questions. No evidence ever conclusively tied Wongso to cyanide procurement, and alternative theories persist. Some speculate Mirna’s death was accidental—a suicidal gesture or a tragic interaction between her ulcer medication and other substances.
Others point to forensic gaps, such as the failure to detect cyanide in the coffee cup during initial tests. Even the Indonesian Supreme Court acknowledged investigative lapses but defended its verdict as necessary to uphold public trust in Indonesia’s legal system.
Where are they now?
Arief Soemarko, Mirna’s husband at the time of the tragedy, has now remarried.
For many, the case symbolizes broader issues: media sensationalism, judicial rigidity, and the peril of conflating public opinion with justice.
The iced coffee murder of Wayan Mirna Salihin is more than a crime—it’s a cultural touchstone that exposes the fissures in justice systems and societal biases.
For Jessica Wongso, parole offers physical freedom but not absolution, as public opinion remains fiercely divided.
For Mirna’s family, grief is compounded by frustration over a verdict they believe failed to deliver closure. Netflix’s Ice Cold documentary, with its revelatory bonus videos and unflinching critique, ensures the case will simmer in global consciousness for years.
As debates rage over guilt, innocence, and judicial reform, one truth endures: this ice cold saga, born from a fractured friendship and adjudicated under the shadow of the Supreme Court, remains as bitterly contested as the drink that started it all.
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