Wanted gang suspect shot dead

JAKARTA (JP): Tangerang detectives shot dead a suspected member of a notorious gang of robbers at the latter's hideout in Lampung in southern Sumatra, early Monday.

Police said the suspect Nesin, 30, who, according to the Tangerang Police records, had been involved in a series of crimes in the city since 1992, died of two bullet wounds, one to his leg and another to his chest.

"He was shot because he put the officers lives in danger," Lt. Col. Zainuri Lubis, spokesman of the City Police, which also supervises Tangerang, said.

The officer added that at the time of the raid in Lampung, some six hours drive from Jakarta, this member of the "Kelompok (group) 20" robbery gang was armed with a dagger.

The gang, police said, was at least involved in a 1992 robbery at a shrimp pond and another robbery involving a rape at Teluk Naga in 1994.

Their latest crime was a robbery at a grocery store in Tengkalo village, Pakuhaji, in which they made off with Rp 60 million in cash and valuables.

The leader of the group, identified as Jaro Inang, is still at large together with 13 other followers. Police said Jaro was armed with a gun.

According to Lubis, the raid on Nesin was carried out by a team of four Tangerang police detectives on the basis of a tip- off from arrested accomplices.

Lubuk Kamal

After days of search and surveillance in Lampung, the team of four detectives finally pinpointed Nesin's whereabouts in the small town of Lubuk Kamal, the spokesman said.

At about 2:30 a.m. on Monday, the detectives spotted Nesin leaving a drink stall near the Lubuk Kamal market.

"They then followed him and later stopped him, showing their police identification cards and a warrant for his arrest," Lubis said.

Instead of giving up himself to the plainclothes officers, Nesin was enraged and pulled out his dagger, threatening the officers and telling them to stay away from him.

Nesin tried to attack the detectives and challenged them to a bare-knuckle fight with him.

In response, one of the officers fired a warning shot to scare him.

However, Nesin became even more furious. According to Lubis, he then said, "I'm not afraid to die but if the police want to arrest me, one of them has to die first."

Nesin then flashed his dagger at one of the officers, Chief Sgt. Gusti, who suffered a light injury to his right palm.

Upon seeing his colleague wounded, another detective then fired a shot at the suspect's leg in order to disable him.

Nesin fell down but still holding on to his dagger, which he pointed at those who moved in on him.

"Another shot was then targeted at his chest as he continued to resist arrest," Lubis said.

Last Thursday, the Tangerang police shot dead one of Nesin's accomplices, Suar, 36, and wounded another, Edi Item, 32.

The wounded Edi managed to flee and is still at large.

Two other members of the gang, Yong In, 27, and Sobri bin Sanusi, 32, have been in police custody since last month.

"In their operations, the gang has always deployed some 10 members. Not all members participate in every robbery," a police source said. (emf)