Tebet police capture gang of thievish scavengers
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)