Motive of Bekasi rape still under study: Police

Motive of Bekasi rape still under study: Police

JAKARTA (JP): Police announced on Tuesday that there has been
no indication that the robbery and brutal rape of a mother and
her two teenage daughters in Bekasi might have been masterminded
by a property developer.

"So far, we have only found strong evidence, and obtained
confessions, that the 11 suspects allegedly robbed and raped the
victims," National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. IK Ratta told
reporters during a weekly meeting at his office.

The rationale that lead the police to their preliminary
conclusion is that the group had already committed a robbery at a
nearby house, Ratta said.

"But we'd be very grateful to have any information from the
public which might help us complete our ongoing investigation to
find the real motive," he said.

The 11 suspects, aged between 19 and 27, were arrested on Aug.
2, after one of the suspects, who was believed to have
masterminded the crime, confessed. The arrest ended a 10-day
investigation on the case, which involved dozens of senior
detectives from city police headquarters.

The robbery and rapes took place at 3:30 a.m. on July 24, in
the house of Acan, 45, a small-scale potato farmer in the small,
isolated Kampung Cimatis village of Jati Karya in Pondok Gede,
Bekasi, 30 kilometers east of Jakarta.

Preliminary investigation states that Acan's wife, 43, was
raped once, while his 15-year-old and 14-year-old daughters,
students at a local Islamic junior high school, were raped four
times each.

According to Ratta, police have yet to disclose the names of
the suspected rapists.

"We still need time to conclude the case," he said.

The horrendous crime, believed to be masterminded by one of
Acan's nephews, immediately sparked public anger, and many
demands for the death penalty.

Although two of the suspects are believed to be from military
families, City Police Chief Maj. Gen. Dibyo Widodo, a former
adjutant to President Soeharto, pledged to treat all the suspects
equally.

Ratta said that, according Bekasi police detectives, the gang
thought Acan might have a large amount of cash in the house,
after selling part of his land three months ago.

Not finding any valuables, some of the group allegedly raped
the female members of Acan's family.

The gang reportedly took only a gold necklace and destroyed
the family's motorcycle parked in front of the house.

However, Ratta said that the police are still investigating
the possibility of the incident being masterminded by a property
developer, who tried to force Acan to leave his house.

However, Ratta claimed that he had no idea on the name of the
property developer, or whether the executives have been summoned
by the Bekasi police for questioning.

"Everything is still ongoing but, as of today, we have found
that it's nothing to do with the issue of a property developer,"
he said.

When asked to comment about denials made by parents of two of
the suspects, that their sons had nothing to do with the case,
Ratta simply said: "Everybody has their right to claim that they
are innocent but we believe in what we're doing."

Police have gathered material evidence relating to the 11
suspects, including sperm samples, fingerprints, blood and
knives.

"All of the evidence is quite strong," Ratta said. (bsr)