Police hunt for Italian after child abuse claims

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Mon, 09/24/2007 3:15 PM  |  National

Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar

Bali police have assigned several detectives to search for an Italian national wanted for allegedly molesting two local teenage boys.

""His whereabouts are still unknown. Some of my officers are now combing several areas looking for this man,"" South Denpasar Police chief Adj. Comr. Gunawan said.

He did not disclose the number of officers involved in the man hunt, nor the areas targeted in the ongoing search.

Police said the 61-year old man had been missing from his rented home in Jl Batur Sari, Sanur, for a number of days.

According to neighbors of the man, identified only as MF, he had lived in the house for three years but did not socialize with others in the neighborhood. Neighbors said they did not know what the man did for a living.

The police began their search for the Italian following the Sept. 20 arrest and questioning of SN, an 18-year-old Indonesian national.

The arrest was made after police received a tip-off from a member of the public that two boys had been molested by the man. Police then questioned the two boys before arresting SN.

According to police, SN was allegedly assisted by another Indonesian national still at large, WL, in taking the boys to the Italian national.

The boys, 13-year-old KD and 15-year-old GD, said they were molested by the man in his house from Sept. 14. The boys live with their parents in lanes near the man's house.

In the front lawn of his house, KD, who celebrated his 13th birthday on Sep. 20, alleged he was sexually assaulted on more than one occasion in the living room of the Italian's house.

KD said the man had once tried to force him to come to his bedroom.

""I refused by scratching his hands with my nails, he shouted that I was mean and then he locked the front door,"" he said.

KD said that he and GD were introduced to SN by their long time friend WL and were then lured to the Italian's house. ""He (SN) said he would give us money,"" KD said.

The boy said they initially only played PlayStation and computer games at the man's house but were eventually asked by him to perform sexual acts.

The 13-year-old said he had been molested twice by the man, while the 15-year-old said he was only molested once.

KD said he received Rp 900,000 (around US$97) every time he was molested. However, he added that SN would then extort the money from him. ""(SN) would take Rp 800,000 and give me the rest,"" he said.

""I used the money to buy books, shoes and a belt,"" the boy said.

The other boy said he only took home Rp 50,000 after being extorted by SN. ""I gave the money to my mother,"" the boy said.

The two boys said they were threatened with violence by SN if they talked to anyone about their encounters with the Italian man.

Police said that under questioning, SN admitted to knowing the Italian for five years having been previously molested by him.

""I never slept with (MF) but (SN) often slept with the bule (Westerner),"" KD said.

KD's father said that he was infuriated when he was told by police of the alleged molestation. He said he had not grown suspicious because his son had not shown any changes in behavior.

""My son had been lying to me. He had been leaving the house at 7 p.m. and coming back at 9:30 p.m. saying that he was babysitting a foreigner's child,"" he said.

Bali has long been home to foreign pedophiles who prey on local children.

In 2004, a former Australian diplomat was sentenced to 13 years in prison for pedophilia, and later killed himself in his cell.

Two recent pedophilia cases involve a German national who allegedly molested several elementary school students in Denpasar, and the alleged molestation of two siblings by a Dutch citizen in Karangasem regency.

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