Tebet police capture gang of thievish scavengers
JAKARTA (JP): Tebet, South Jakarta, police announced that they have busted a six-strong gang of scavengers believed to have stolen tens of millions of rupiah in goods from several luxury houses and a private company office in the mayoralty.
"We have also captured several persons believed to be fences who have bought the stolen goods," Maj. Bambang Hermanu, Tebet district police chief, told reporters yesterday.
The scavengers were Carta alias Pelo, 62, Joko Setyono, 30, Parmin alias Gendut, 42, Gimin alias Parto, 25, Dakim, 27, all living in Jl. Tebet Barat, South Jakarta; and Suwarno, 26, who was suspected as the brain of the gang. Suwarno stayed in the same house with the others.
"Suwarno was captured in his house in Purwodadi, Central Java," said Bambang, adding that Suwarno's accomplices were arrested in their rented house in Tebet two weeks ago.
During interrogation, the six scavengers admitted their guilt in robbing three houses and the PT Nusa Karpindo Wijaya Tama office in Tebet.
"We are still investigating whether they have robbed other houses and have asked the public to report any instances to us soon," said Bambang.
The gang then sold the loot to six fences, Karnadi, 46, a resident of Tebet Barat in South Jakarta, Fuad, 46, of Rawa Badak in West Jakarta, Syamsul Arifin, 22, of Klender in East Jakarta, Usep Saefudin, 34, of Kampung Melayu in East Jakarta, and Suhendra, 23, and Abdul Hamid, 46, both residents of Setiabudi in South Jakarta.
Based on results of the investigation, Bambang said, police captured all the fences yesterday.
"As evidence we have also confiscated one colored television set, one Sony video player, a gas tank, and 24 electric water pumps from the suspects," said Bambang.
Modus operandi
Explaining the modus operandi of the gang Bambang said one or two of the scavengers was directed by Suwarno to ride a bicycle across the housing complex in the district in order observe the house to be their target.
They usually selected premises with outside lights turned on, believing the lights indicated the owners were not at home or otherwise the lights should have been switched off.
The gang members usually committed the robbery between 1 and 4 p.m.. They usually broke into the targeted houses by smashing the windows after forcing the iron bars open, while the others who waited outside pretended to collect garbage.
After that their procedure was to load the stolen goods into their carts, covered with refuse, and push the carts home. They then would store the loot for a few days before they sold it to the fences.
Bambang said police started to focus their investigation on the scavengers after one of the victims informed them that she saw some scavengers suspiciously observing her house on the afternoon prior to the robbery. (jsk)