Unlicensed tow truck crew caught

JAKARTA (JP): West Jakarta Police on Wednesday arrested three members of an unlicensed East Jakarta tow truck crew who tried to extort money from a vehicle owner, deputy police chief Maj. Syafril Nursal said.

Syafril said Freddy, 22, Erasmus, 33, and Parlan, 32, part of an unlicensed five-man tow truck crew, tried to force Hendra, 38, to pay them to tow his Mitsubishi Colt sedan after it broke down on the toll road near Grogol.

"When Hendra refused to pay, the three told him they would tow the truck to their illegal Cawang pool, and that he should follow them. When they neared the West Jakarta Police station, Hendra screamed for help," Syafril said.

"Hendra is an ordinary businessman who was heading to his home in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta. When his car broke down, these three men approached him, and tried to exact a payment from him. They had not reached an agreement since Hendra flatly refused to pay them." (ylt)