Australian tossed in jail, released

Australian tossed in jail, released

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

An Australian national was released from jail on Friday and
cleared of charges that he had drugged an Indonesian woman and
fled with her belongings.

City Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Tjiptono said that the man was
wrongfully arrested on Thursday while shopping at the Atrium
Plaza shopping mall in Central Jakarta.

The arrest was made after the victim, identified only as
Intan, called the police after seeing the man she mistakenly
thought was a person she met earlier who had, as she claimed,
robbed her.

Tjiptono apparently believed Intan's story, that she was
offered US$100 to "accompany" Robert, alias Steve -- in his early
40s -- to his hotel room in Central Jakarta late last year.

The police officer added that this Robert was accused of
putting sleeping pills into Intan's drink, causing her to fall
unconscious for hours.

"Intan finally woke up when a room attendant broke into the
room. She then claimed that the man had disappeared with her
cellular phone, money and jewelry, the total value of which was
Rp 9 million."

After releasing the foreigner on Friday, Tjiptono said that
Robert, alias Steve, was still on the police manhunt list.

"We had to let the other man go. His name is Mike, not
Robert," he said, refusing to elaborate further on the identity
of the man.

Asked whether there was a possibility that Robert had robbed
other women, Tjiptono said that it was possible.

"Learning of his apparent modus operandi, it is possible that
he has cheated many other women. We hope the victims report their
cases to the police," he said.