Passenger robbed by taxi driver

Passenger robbed by taxi driver

TANGERANG (JP): Detectives here are attempting to trace the
driver of a Koperasi taxi suspected of involvement in the robbery
of his passenger on the toll road at Warakas in North Jakarta on
Sunday.

Tangerang Police Detectives chief Capt. Krisnadi said on
Monday the driver, whose identity remains unknown, and two
unidentified accomplices robbed Rp 200,000 (US$28) and five sets
of clothing from Anton Ridwan, 27, a North Jakarta resident who
had just returned home from the South Sumatra capital of
Palembang.

Krisnadi said the victim arrived at Soekarno-Hatta
International Airport at around 7 p.m. and caught Koperasi taxi
number 1048 to his home on Jl. Nur Tugu.

"On the Warakas toll road, the driver stopped the taxi
suddenly and told the passenger it had stalled," the officer
said.

Almost simultaneously, two men jumped into the taxi and held
knives to the victim, Krisnadi added.

In fear of his life, Anton handed over his belongings, which
he said were worth a total of Rp 600,000, Krisnadi explained.

The driver then drove the taxi back to Tangerang, where he
threw Anton into the Cisadane river at Panunggangan Timur in
Cipondoh district, he said.

Fortunately, officer Krisnadi said, the victim saved himself
by clinging to a bridge pile while local residents mounted a
rescue.

Anton suffered bruising and a broken leg.

When contacted last night, an official in charge of security
at PT Koperasi Taksi Indonesia confirmed that the robbery had
taken place but said he did not know who had been driving taxi
number 1048 at the time.

"We have over 1,000 taxis operating for us, but most of them
belong to private individuals," official Rozali told The Jakarta
Post.

"Police came to our office (on Jl. Tanah Merdeka in East
Jakarta) this afternoon, but we could not do anything to help
them," he added.

The police told him the taxi had been found on Jl. Jahe in
Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta, and that the owner had been
informed, he said. (41/jun)