Four men wanted over armed heist still at large
TANGERANG (JP): Police were continuing efforts to track down four armed men driving a metallic gray Kijang van as of late yesterday for their role in a daylight robbery that seriously wounded three people.
"We have put our officers on alert and coordinated a pursuit together with other police precincts," Tangerang Police Chief Lt. Col. Pudji Hartanto told The Jakarta Post last night.
According to Pudji, the robbers used a bogus plate number of B 2745 JN.
"We have checked the number, and it turned out to be a fake, since the number belonged to a (Suzuki) Jimny car. We tried to match it with the letter ZN, but still another car showed up in the computer," he said.
The thieves allegedly sped off with Rp 31 million in cash yesterday after shooting two Bank Bukopin employees at Kilometer 32.4 of the Sediyatmo toll road as they were taking two safety boxes to the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
The gang also shot an ojek (motorcycle taxi) driver who attempted to block their escape.
Police have collected at least five spent cartridges and a projectile from the scene of the crime.
"The robbers probably used a .45 FN gun. We believe they're also armed with several sharp weapons, such as sickles and machetes," Pudji added.
Witnesses and the preliminary police investigation indicated that the robbery took place at 9:10 a.m. under a flyover adjacent to the airport's main exit gate.
Bank Bukopin security guard Sugandi Prasetyo, 39, bank employee Winarti Rahayu, 31, and driver Purnawan, 35, were driving to the airport in a bank-owned green Kijang van when they were forced to stop by the robbers.
"We were taking money from our branch in Slipi, West Jakarta, to our branch at the airport," recalled Purnawan, who survived the incident unscathed.
"Suddenly, a Kijang tried to push our vehicle from the right lane, forcing us to pull over. They hit the right side of our car and eventually we stopped," he said.
One of the robbers, Purnawan said, then broke the front left window of the bank car and took the two cash boxes.
"Sugandi jumped out of the car and tried to run for help. He was about to get into a taxi when one of the criminals spotted him and shot him in his right leg."
Winarti was shot in her left leg while trying to run away. "And the robbers just took off," Purnawan added.
A shaken Winarti told reporters that she could not clearly remember what the robbers looked like.
"I was busy trying to escape ... I was scared to death," she said.
Pudji said the robbers exited the toll road and headed to Jl. Husen Sastranegara, where a group of ojek drivers, who saw the incident, tried to chase and block their way.
"The first ojek driver, Tamzir, tried to chase the robbers. But when he pulled up to the left side of the car, one of the crooks opened fire and hit his motorcycle battery.
"The second ojek driver, Nazrudin, took a short cut and got near the right side of the robbers' van.
"But again the crooks opened fire and this time the bullet hit Nazrudin's left hip," Pudji explained.
The robbers then fled to the Kalideres area, the officer said.
Sugandi was treated at Tangerang General Hospital, Winarti in Honoris Tangerang Hospital and Nazrudin, 25, in Pluit Hospital, North Jakarta.
According to Pudji, the robbers had followed the bank van for some time.
"They were very quick and cruel in carrying out their operation," he added.
Judging from the newly begun investigation, the robbers may have been connected to several previous armed robberies in Jakarta, he added.
When asked to comment on the robbery, City Police Chief Maj. Gen. Noegroho Djajoesman, who also supervises the Tangerang area, said he would soon set up a special team of detectives to track down the armed robbers.
Police have created several special teams in an effort to curb the crime rate in the greater Jakarta area. The move, however, has not stopped many criminals from preying on businesses and individuals in the capital. (edt/41)