Chicago judge orders Heather Mack to stay in jail as she awaits trial in mother’s Bali murder

CHICAGO — A federal judge has ordered Heather Mack to remain in jail after denying her motion for bond on Thursday.

Mack is currently awaiting trial for the murder of her mother in Bali. Her lawyers argue she’s not a danger to the community, or a flight risk.

Mack’s aunt begged the judge Thursday to keep her in custody. Her uncle also pleaded with the judge, and expressed that their sense of security would be shattered if she was released.

The badly beaten body of a wealthy Chicago socialite, Sheila von Wiese-Mack, 62, of Oak Park, was found inside the trunk of a taxi parked at the upscale St. Regis Bali Resort in August 2014.

Heather Mack, who was almost 19 and a few weeks pregnant at the time, and her then-21-year-old boyfriend, Tommy Schaefer, were arrested a day later after they were found at a hotel about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the St. Regis.

Prosecutors claim Mack was directly involved in her mother’s death and should stay in jail.

Mack spent seven years in prison in Indonesia before she was deported. She was arrested last year, shortly after returning to the states. Schaefer remains in prison in Indonesia.

Mack will remain in federal custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Center. Her case is set to go to trial next summer.

If convicted, Mack could face up to life in prison.