Blue Bird driver says police beat him up

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sat, 10/14/2006 8:10 AM  |  Jakarta

Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A taxi driver filed a complaint with the Jakarta Police on Thursday night, saying five policemen beat him up for security money.

Gani Abdilah, 43, a driver with the city's largest taxi company Blue Bird, sustained bruises to his face and body after being set upon Thursday evening by five ""well-built"" men in front of the Wisma Metropolitan building on Jl. Sudirman in South Jakarta.

The five policemen, according to Gani, were assigned to guard the building.

Sporting a black eye, Gani reported the men to police for violating Article 170 of the Criminal Code on group assault.

When contacted later Gani confirmed the incident. He said he did not know the names of the five men, but had frequently seen them watching over the area.

""That night one of them was in full uniform and the other four were wearing brown trousers and police jackets,"" he said.

He said he was drinking coffee and waiting for passengers with other taxi drivers in front of the Wisma Metropolitan building at about 10 p.m. when the five men confronted him.

""They said I was the one who threatened to bottle one of them during a brawl the other night.""

Gani said the men had been asking for the driver of Blue Bird taxi number RT 500.

""My taxi number is RT 500,"" he said.

Gani said the men were beginning to close in on him when a fellow taxi driver, Noviadi, intervened.

The men allegedly started to hit Noviadi instead.

They only let up when female passengers, who had been about to board the taxi, shouted out to the five men to stop the beating.

""They screamed at the police officers, saying they should not act like that to a Blue Bird driver,"" Gani said.

After letting Noviadi go, the five men shifted their attention to Gani.

Gani said he believed the problem was over taxis parking outside Wisma Metropolitan.

He said taxi drivers were not supposed to stop there, however, according to Gani, security guards allowed them to do so after 9 p.m. if they paid Rp 1,000 per taxi.

He said there had never been a problem before but, entering the fasting month and nearing Idul Fitri, police had been asking them not to park there.

""We've already gave the security money to security guards in Wisma Metropolitan, I don't know why they're acting like that,"" Gani said.

Blue Bird spokesperson Teguh Wijayanto confirmed that a company driver had filed assault charges against five policemen.

He said the incident was triggered by a simple misunderstanding between the five men and the taxi driver.

""Maybe they thought the taxi driver was being rude,"" he said.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said: ""Police need to determine the validity of the report. If it's true, the officers in question will be punished for their actions.""

He said the police's internal affairs division would handle the case.

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