Cirebon police to crush extorters

Cirebon police to crush extorters

CIREBON, West Java: Police here have vowed to crack down on thugs
blamed for rampant extortion on buses and other vehicles
traversing the Cirebon-Jakarta highway along the north coast of
Java.

Cirebon Police chief Sr. Comr. Sunaryono said he had issued an
order for district police chiefs overseeing security in the city
and the neighboring towns of Indramayu, Kuningan and Majalengka
to enforce the law against bus extorters.

"We will crush all thugs who extort people on hundreds of
buses traveling here," he said.

The instruction was in response to a recent protest by 400
crews of intercity buses from at least seven bus operators in
Cirebon, who complained about prevalent extortion on the busy
highway.

They cited that the main roads between Jatibarang in Indramayu
and the Cikampek toll road gate were the most vulnerable to
extortion.

The protesters said the extorters were usually in groups of
five or 10 thugs, aged 17 years to 25 years old.

"Their modus operandi is to stop buses in deserted areas and
intimidate the crews for Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000 each time,"
said operational manager of the Bhineka bus company Ali Gazali,
who led the protest.

"If their request is turned down, our buses would become the
target of destruction. The thugs could even attack bus crews if
they were dissatisfied," he added. --JP