Inform police before Idul Fitri exile

JAKARTA: Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Makbul Padmanagara called on Jakartans on Friday to inform local security guards in their neighborhood of their plans for the Idul Fitri holiday so the guards can beef up security measures on empty premises.

He said that by informing police or security guards, the officers could intensify patrols to prevent crimes from occurring in the area.

Every year, millions of people in the capital always travel to their hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri by land, sea and air transportation.

Police warned that many burglars will be targeting empty houses to break into and steal valuable items.

Burglary is one of the major offenses in the city. From January to June this year, 2,955 cases have been reported to the police. Last year, 4,567 cases were reported to the police, a decline by 10 percent against 5,039 in the previous year. -- JP