One dead, one loses ears in mobbings

JAKARTA (JP): One man was killed and another had his ears cut off, but survived, after being attacked by vendors in markets in South and West Jakarta yesterday.

A man identified as Charlie, 23, was beaten to death by vendors in the Mampang Prapatan market, South Jakarta, Monday night.

Police said the vendors caught Charlie stealing jackets, T- shirts and two kilograms of freshwater catfish from a vendor, Yanto, who was in the public toilet at the time.

The beating stopped when officers from the Mampang police precinct arrived and broke up the crowd.

City Police spokesman Lt. Col. E. Aritonang said Charlie, who suffered from serious injuries to his entire body, died at Kramat Djati police hospital yesterday at dawn.

"Police are still questioning several vendors believed to have witnessed the incident," Aritonang said yesterday.

The man whose ears were cut off was 26-year-old Mansur. He was mobbed by vendors who caught him stealing money and fruit in the Jembatan Lima fruit market, West Jakarta.

Aritonang said his ears were cut off with a knife. (cst)