Highway robbery gearing up on public vehicles<\/p>\n
Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Jakarta commuters are familiar with the threat to their
\npossessions posed by pickpockets aboard buses, minibuses,
\nminivans and trains. But the latest police data reveals that the
\nmore serious crime of robbery with violence aboard public
\ntransportation has risen dramatically.<\/p>\n
According to data from March, the number of incidents of
\nrobbery with violence jumped fourfold to eight cases from two
\ncases in both January and February.<\/p>\n
The crimes took place aboard minibuses, air-conditioned buses
\nand minivans.<\/p>\n
In a fatal incident on March 30, a member of the Sea and Air
\nPolice, Comr. Jaka Sampurna, 42, was robbed by five men aboard a
\npublic minivan on Jl. RE Martadinata in Tanjung Priok, North
\nJakarta. The men stole Jaka's bag and then threw him out of the
\nmoving minivan.<\/p>\n
The officer died last Monday at the Mitra Kemayoran Hospital
\nafter five days in a coma.<\/p>\n
The Tanjung Priok Police arrested on Monday afternoon two of
\nthe suspected robbers, who reportedly confessed to their part in
\nthe crime. They said that the victim, who at the time of the
\nrobbery was not wearing his uniform, was the only passenger on
\nboard the minivan.<\/p>\n
Police are still searching for the remaining three suspects.<\/p>\n
In another incident aboard a public minivan in Serpong,
\nTangerang, on March 16, several men threatened a group of
\nelementary school girls with knives and stole their bags.<\/p>\n
The latest case reported to the police took place last
\nSaturday at 11:30 p.m. aboard a public minivan traveling between
\nKampung Melayu and Gandaria in East Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Three women who had just gotten on the minivan were held up by
\ntwo armed men. However, the women's screams attracted residents
\nto the scene, and they were able to apprehend the robbers and
\nhand them over to the authorities.<\/p>\n
Adrianus Meliala, a criminologist at the University of
\nIndonesia, said violent robberies were not new to the city.<\/p>\n
"This crime is not new, it is just that criminals change their
\nmethods from time to time, depending on the situation," he told
\nThe Jakarta Post on Sunday. "Once the police catch on to one
\nmethod, the criminals change to a new one."<\/p>\n
Despite the fact that the Jakarta Police have widened their
\npatrols to cover the entire capital, Adrianus said this was not
\nsufficient to stop robberies aboard public transportation.<\/p>\n
"The police should plant plainclothes detectives on board
\npublic transportation. That would be more effective," he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/highway-robbery-gearing-up-on-public-vehicles-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}