Police unveil auto theft syndicate

Police unveil auto theft syndicate

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Police say they have smashed a car-theft ring operating mainly in
Bali and Jakarta, which is also capable of producing a range of
fake documents, including for stolen cars.

"The group mostly targets rented cars. They rent cars and send
all the information about the cars to their accomplices in
Jakarta. The group immediately produces fake documents to enable
them to take the cars out of the city without any suspicion from
the police," Jakarta Police auto theft chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Boy
Rafli Amar alleged Monday.

Three of the group's five members had been arrested between
March and July 4.

Police first captured Budi, who had allegedly stolen cars from
several car rental outlets in Kuta, Bali. After interrogation
Budi implicated Herman, alias Ahwat, who was also arrested.

Herman was accused of being a middleman who passed the stolen
cars to Yongki, alias Erwin or Tusai. He is still at large.

Based on Herman's statement, police then captured Tan King
Sui, alias Asui, who allegedly committed the document forgery.

"From Asui's home in Sunter Agung, North Jakarta, we seized
evidence, including devices to produce fake documents," Boy said.

The professional group was not only capable of producing fake
vehicle registration license numbers issued by the police, but
also of producing fake Jakarta IDs, family IDs and tax arrears
receipts for vehicles issued by the city administration.

"The group is really professional ... only experts can
distinguish between the fake documents they produce and the
original ones," Boy said.

Boy said Asui had admitted committing the forgery for more
than three years, producing about 50 fake documents.

"But, of course, we believe that the figure is far higher than
only 50 as we found hundreds of blank forms in Asui's house."

Police are also searching for another suspect called Ahan,
alias Agus.

Boy played down the possibility that police officers were
involved in the ring.

"So far, all the suspects are civilians," he said.

In addition to the group, police had also arrested B.S. Dharma
Putra for allegedly stealing eight cars from Otto Rental Cars.

"He has sold those cars to other people at a very cheap price
of between Rp 30 million (about US$3,600) and Rp 40 million," Boy
said. Most of the vehicles were Toyota Kijang vans.

Stolen cars are often used by criminals during crimes to avoid
being traced. A bomb planted in a stolen car, for instance, was
detonated outside the residence of then Philippines ambassador
Leonides T. Caday in 2000. The ambassador was severely injured
and two of his Indonesian staff killed.

In the first three months of the year police have received
1,940 reports of auto theft. A total of 6,264 auto thefts were
reported last year.