Stolen painting remains a mystery

JAKARTA (JP): After a three-month hunt, Cilandak Police are still in the dark over the whereabouts of a painting reportedly attributed to Indonesian master Affandi, which was stolen from a house in South Jakarta on Dec. 31, 1999.

People have become increasingly suspicious as PT Indonesia Megah, which advertised a Rp 100 million reward in some newspapers in February for any information leading to the recovery of the painting, placed advertisements in The Jakarta Post and Kompas on Saturday and Monday announcing that the offer had been withdrawn.

However, there is no information as to whether the painting has been recovered or is still missing.

"We have yet to receive any reports from the company that the painting has been recovered," said Cilandak Police chief Maj. Nurhayati on Monday.

Last month, the police were forced to review their investigation into the theft which allegedly occurred at the house of Nindia, a resident of Jl. Anggur III/30 in Cipete, South Jakarta, following the reward announcement in newspapers.

The advertisement, which appeared in Post, Kompas and Suara Pembaruan, showed a grainy black-and-white print of the painting, saying that it belonged to Affandi, the late Indonesian painter. The company said the piece measured 166 by 124 square centimeters.

The police made some progress last month, disclosing that the painting was not owned by Nindia as earlier reported, but by an unidentified person who now lives abroad.

Nurhayati defended that immigration technicalities were behind the police's sluggish investigation of the case.

"We couldn't get the information about the owner, moreover, he is believed to be living abroad," she told the Post.

She said the police also failed to track down the whereabouts of Nindia, who was expected to provide a tip off in the case.

"The police sent a summons to her, but she never responded. Her house is always empty," Nurhayati said.

The Post, however, later discovered that Nindia no longer lived in Jakarta.

"She now lives in Surabaya," said a man at Nindia's house.

The unidentified person refused to talk further to the Post, which contacted him by phone, warning against writing a story about the case.

"There is nothing about the painting, so you must not write any stories about it," he said.

PT Indonesia Megah gave a similar response when contacted about the missing painting on Monday.

"Our statement is represented in our recent advertisements, which announce that the offer has been withdrawn," said Dina, an employee at the company, who refused to talk further. (asa)