'Ojek' rapists target Tangerang

TANGERANG: Women who hail an ojek (motorcycle taxi) in Tangerang are cautioned to be extra careful, especially in the evening, following two rape cases allegedly committed by ojek drivers.

The most recent case took place last Saturday, when a 26-year- old woman took an ojek from her home in Rawa Bokor, Benda district, to her brother's house in Cengkareng, West Jakarta.

The driver allegedly drove her around for more than three hours and stopped at a remote, vacant plot in Cikupa, Tangerang. The victim said several other ojek drivers gathered at the site and gang raped her.

A local resident found her later and summoning help, took her to her brother's house. She was admitted to Tangerang Hospital for lesions, contusions and depression from her ordeal.

The first incident took place also on a Saturday -- April 3 -- but the attempted rape was foiled by an Anggrek Loka security guard in the Bumi Serpong Damai housing estate, where the ojek driver took his intended victim. The woman had asked to be taken to Cengkareng.

Tangerang Police chief Sr. Comr. I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said on Monday that the two were the first such cases in the municipality.

"We are investigating the cases. We suspect the culprit was the same person," he said. -- JP