Armed robbers make off with Rp 150m in Yogyakarta

YOGYAKARTA (JP): An armed robbery took place in broad daylight in Yogyakarta -- the sixth this year -- when robbers shot a victim and got away with Rp 150 million in cash on one of the busiest thoroughfares in the city, just 50 meters away from a police station.

The Jakarta Post who happened to be around the accident site on Jl. Diponegoro noticed Anggie alias Sutejo (36), the employee of a travel agency PT Nusa Santana Prima, lying on the sidewalk with gunshot wounds in the leg and waist.

Police said that Anggie had just withdrawn some money from a branch of Bank Central Asia, accompanied by a friend Asmoro alias Mamok and driver Mulyadi.

The driver parked Anggie's car about 15 meters away from the office, which is located on the northeast corner of Pingit crossroads.

Witnesses said that Anggie was about to enter his office when three masked men intercepted him and stole the bundle of money he was keeping under his jacket. Mamok and Mulyadi were unable to help but saw the drama.

"It all happened very quickly. The man (Anggie) was shot three times by one of the robbers and fell on the pavement. Some street vendors just screamed," said a shoemaker, who noticed the robbery, but could do nothing to help. Anggie was rushed to Bethesda Hospital soon after police officers arrived.

"One of the robbers waved his gun to scare people. The three robbers then jumped onto motorbikes driven by their accomplices who had been waiting," he said.

Marshall Santana Paulus, director of PT Nusa Santana Prima, told the Post, later in the evening, that he was in the office when the robbery took place.

He said the money was to be used for the travel agency's daily operational costs.

"Thank God, the bullets can be removed by an operation. All I hope is that my employee (Anggie) will get better soon and return back to work as normal."

Marshall said that he believed police would handle the case properly. (23)