Three quizzed over Bekasi gang rape
Three quizzed over Bekasi gang rape
JAKARTA (JP): Three men are being interrogated by the Bekasi police for their alleged roles in Tuesday's robbery and gang rape in Kampung Kemurang in the village of Cikedokan.
"Two of their accomplices are still at large," Bekasi Police Chief Lt. Col. Elfrizo Tobing told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
The officer, however, refused to reveal the identities or the alleged roles of the three men.
"We haven't reached a conclusion about their status because everything is still under investigation," Tobing said. "So, I don't think we need to reveal their identities at the moment."
The gang rape and robbery happened at around 1:00 a.m. on Tuesday in the home of Inu Sutisna, 35, a fertilizer trader in the village.
At least five masked people armed with knives are believed to have taken part in the robbery. Before making off with Rp 60,000 in cash and 70 grams of gold jewelry, two of the men raped Sutisna's 27-year-old wife.
After breaking into the small trader's home, the group is believed to have broken into a neighboring house belonging to Empe, 55. The robbers stole Rp 90,000 and five grams of gold jewelry. They sexually molested two of Empe's teenage daughters before leaving.
According to officer Tobing, the police investigation would be easier if the other two were captured.
"We could match their statements with those of the others before reaching a conclusion," said Tobing.
Tuesday's robbery and rape indicates a new criminal trend in Bekasi, over 30 kilometer east of the capital.
Despite the development of many property projects over the past few years, the town is home to thousands of jobless and low- income labors.
At least four similar cases have happened in Bekasi recently. The latest occurred on Monday evening last week when a group of three robbers broke into at the bamboo house of Ijo, 40, a poor farmer in Kampung Sungailahang in the Pantai Harapan Jaya village.
The robbers stole 50 grams of gold jewelry before raping the farmer's 35-year-old wife.
Tobing said a number of detectives have been assigned to hunt down the three suspects, who are already known to the police.
"Based on preliminary investigation, we could say that the motive behind this case is a long-standing problem which occurred between the suspects and the victims," the police officer said. He did not elaborate.
Tobing admitted that the local police did not understand the robbery-rape trend.
An investigation by local police has determined that most of the rape victims were not wearing underwear when the robbers broke into their homes.
Tobing refused to comment when questioned about the finding. (bsr)