Car thief beaten to death

JAKARTA (JP): A suspected car thief lost his life after he was caught following a dramatic two-hour chase and brutally beaten by angry residents and ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers of Jl. Otista and the Kampung Melayu area in East Jakarta on Monday evening.

Tebet Police chief of detectives First. Lt. Supangat identified the dead suspect as Arrafiq, 18, a student and a resident of Sungai Begug village in Semper district, North Jakarta.

"Residents and ojek drivers saw the suspect use a T key to rob a blue Kijang van parked in front of the East Jakarta Sports Stadium on Jl. Otista, at about 8 p.m. on Monday," Supangat told reporters on Tuesday.

He said the suspect drove toward Tebet in South Jakarta, via Jl. Otista, Jl. Casablanca and then Jl. Tebet Utara.

"Due to one-way traffic on Tebet Utara, the car could not move. The terrified suspect got out of the car and tried to run away, but the residents and ojek drivers kept following and caught up with him at about 10 p.m. They beat him up so badly, he was hardly alive," Supangat said.

Tebet Police immediately rushed the suspect to Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, but Arrafiq died on the way. (ylt)