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)