Police detain housemaid over robbery

JAKARTA (JP): Police have detained a 40-year-old housemaid for her alleged involvement in a robbery at the home of a Nigerian national in Permata Hijau, South Jakarta, an officer said.

"We have detained, not incarcerated, the suspect at the police station for questioning," city police spokesman Lt. Col. E. Aritonang said Thursday.

Police are still looking for two men and two women who are believed to be accomplices of the suspect, Sumiah.

Sumiah told interrogators she was alone in the house of her employer -- Nigerian expatriate Umaro Ebachiles, 28 -- on Jl. Mas Murni when a female friend arrived. The friend asked her to help find a job at a foreigner's house.

Aritonang said Sumiah claimed three of her friend's accomplices later came to the house and tied her up before locking her in the kitchen.

He quoted Sumiah as saying that the robbers went upstairs and forced their way into her employer's bedroom and stole his gold jewelry. They also stole a television set and loud speakers from the living room.

She said she untied herself after the robbers left the house.

"She said she crawled out of the kitchen with her mouth still stuffed with a napkin and cut the plastic rope around her hands by rubbing it against a sharp stone she found in the garden."

Aritonang said interrogators doubt Sumiah's version of events because of her illogical description of the crime's chronology.

"Several piece of information she gave the interrogators were absurd and contradicted each other. For example, she said she managed to crawl out of the kitchen, but the kitchen was locked from the outside. How could she do such a thing?"

The fact that Sumiah was a friend of one of the four robbers was another reason for the police to detain her for further investigation, he said.

The only items stolen were the television set, loud speakers and 70 grams of jewelry, he said.

"The funny thing is that they did not take other electronic products, ranging from a laptop, computer and printer to VCD (video compact disk) and laser disc players which were in the living room." (cst)