Portuguese Ambassador car thief arrested

JAKARTA: Police have arrested a 43-year-old man on suspicion of stealing a car belonging to the Portuguese ambassador to Indonesia on Jan. 16 this year, the city police detectives' chief said on Wednesday.

The suspect, Soewandi, was arrested on Tuesday at his wife's home on Jl. Salak Putih, Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, Sr. Comr. Bambang Hendarso told reporters.

Soewandi and another suspect, Jeffry, who is still at large, had obtained jobs as chauffeurs for Ambassador Ana Maria Rosa Martins Gomez.

But when the ambassador went abroad, they stole a silver Mercedes-Benz from its parking place at Gomez's residence in the Dharmawangsa apartments in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.

Such a success story, however, is a rarity in the police's war on auto theft in the capital. -- JP