Auto theft still haunts Jakartans-besides traffic

Hasyim Widhiarto ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 01/06/2010 10:40 AM  |  City

Traffic congestion may be a perennial headache, but one thing is worse: car or motorcycle theft.

Although the number of auto-thefts in 2009 slightly declined from 2008, the Jakarta Police unveiled recently that auto theft topped the list of the most frequent offenses in the city.

“In a big metropolis such as Jakarta, auto theft is a major crime amid fast-growing vehicle ownership by city residents,” Adj. Sr. Comr. Nico Afinta Sukapiring, City Police Violence and Crime Division chief, said.

“Today, through various installment schemes, [loans to purchase vehicles], almost everyone in Jakarta can buy a motorcycle,” Nico said.

“With countless vehicles in the city, it is easy for auto thieves to cash in on the situation,” he said.

Currently, more than 2 million cars and 3.7 million motorcycles run on the city’s streets every day.

In its 2009 year-end report, the Jakarta Police reported 7,931 motorcycles and 1,557 cars stolen, a slight decline from 8,948 motorcycles and 1,737 cars in 2008.

Out of the reported cases, police managed to solve 1,074 cases, or 11 percent.

Many financing companies now let consumers take home a motorcycle after paying Rp 500,000 (US$53), or even less, as down payment.

The Jakarta Police once estimated there was 897 new motorcycles pouring into city streets every day, around four times higher than new cars.

Among the areas where cars and motorcycle thefts frequently occur are Tanah Abang district, Central Jakarta, Kebayoran Lama district, South Jakarta and Taman Sari district, West Jakarta.

Seeing the steady trend of auto theft in Jakarta, University of Indonesia criminologist Iqrak Sulhin urged auto owners not to rely on security technology to protect their cars or motorcycles.

“Even a digital alarm system, a once must-have security technology, is currently not reliable as auto thieves have developed ways to paralyze the system, for example, by using magnets,” Iqrak told The Jakarta Post.  

“Criminals learn how to conquer technology.”

Considering this, Iqrak asked owners to be more careful when leaving their motor vehicles.

“They should avoid leaving their valuables unattended in the car or park their vehicles in less visible
areas.”

How criminals organize crimes has proved to be a barrier.

“Most auto thieves in Greater Jakarta work in gangs,” Nico said.

“It is true that we could catch one or two thieves sometimes, but groups then recruit more men to keep their system working,” he said.

On Monday, Bogor Police detectives apprehended four suspects who posed as policemen and robbed young couples riding motorcycles at quiet parks in Bogor and Depok.

The gang of robbers watched their victims and stole their motorcycles while other gang members took the victims in a car and let them out along the toll road.

Related to the huge number of vehicles in the city, the police recorded that 6,896 traffic accidents were reported last year with 1,016 fatalities and 7,000 injuries.

The number of traffic accidents was a 7.5 percent increase from 6,393 accidents reported in 2008.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.