Rp 60,000 robbed from vendor

JAKARTA (JP): Depok Police detectives are still questioning a man arrested on Friday for allegedly stealing a purse containing Rp 60,000 (US$8) from a mobile vegetable vendor near Jembatan Gandul, Cinere, Sawangan.

Sawangan Police chief Capt. Budiyanto said that the money had been earned by the trader after selling vegetables between 3 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. on the same day.

"The suspect not only stole the purse. He also twice struck the back of the victim's head with a machete," the officer said.

Budiyanto identified the suspect as Mashadi, 28, who was arrested about an hour after the crime occurred at 7 a.m.

The vegetable seller, Ngatemi, 33, a resident of Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, is still being treated at Bhakti Yudha Hospital in Depok.

According to Budiyanto, the victim was carrying his merchandises on a bicycle when the robber started to follow him.

"Upon reaching a quiet area, the suspect waved his machete in front of the victim and demanded his purse. The frightened Ngatemi tried to resist, and was struck by the machete on the back of his head," Budiyanto said.

"Ngatemi was so terrified he jumped into a nearby sewer. The suspect managed to flee when residents arrived at the scene.

Some of the locals took Ngatemi to hospital, while others reported the case to Sawangan Police," he said.

Mashadi was arrested after the police combed the crime scene.

Later on, another police source gave a different version of the story.

The source said when Ngatemi was bleeding and being comforted by residents, an officer from the South Jakarta Police was passing by on a motorcycle, and immediately asked what had happened.

"When residents told him that a thief was getting away, he drove his motorcycle, saw the fleeing thief and crashed into him with the motorcycle. The officer brought the suspect to the Sawangan subdistrict office," the source said.

"The subdistrict office contacted the Sawangan Police, and an officer was sent to the subdistrict office to fetch the suspect." (ylt)