Armed robbery in Cikini

JAKARTA (JP): Two armed men robbed yesterday Ibukota a gold and jewelry shop on Jl. Cikini Raya, Menteng, Central Jakarta, and made off with three gold bracelets, weighing 180 grams.

A shop employee, Siska, told the police two unidentified men entered the shop saying they wanted gold bracelets.

The Central Jakarta Police Precinct chief, Lt. Col. Ibrahim said while Siska was showing them the bracelets, one of the robbers pointed a gun at her and threatened to kill her if she tried to resist.

"They ordered Siska upstairs, stole three gold bracelets and escaped," said Ibrahim.

Siska told the police that before she went upstairs, she signaled she was being robbed to a roadside vendor in front of her shop.

The vendor, identified as Purnan, then told a security guard who reported the robbery to the Menteng police station, some 200 meters away.

Police officers, backed up by members of the local military, besieged the shop, adjacent to the BCA bank branch office.

"The officers believed the robbers were holding Siska in the shop," Ibrahim said.

The "drama" interested passersby and local residents who flocked to the area causing traffic jams.

"The officers did not find anyone in the shop. The robbers had gone and Siska had escaped through the BCA office," Ibrahim said. Siska injured her legs in the incident and is being treated at the Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital.

"The gun used by the robbers could be fake as Siska said it was gray," Ibrahim said. He said he wondered why the robbers did not steal all the jewelry. (jun/04/sur)