Police probe child abduction cases

Denpasar Police have been investigating child abduction cases in the Bali capital over the last few months.

The police Saturday arrested a 44-year-old man named Made Sumarjaya, suspected to have abducted and raped a 13-year-old girl, and are now developing the investigation to confirm if the suspect was involved in previous similar cases.

The most recent case occurred to a 9-year-old girl last week in Monang Maning area in Denpasar.
According to police, the girl was kidnapped on her way to school and was taken to a vacant house in Ubung, West Denpasar, where she was raped.

“We have yet to find a connection between the suspect and the previous cases,”  Denpasar Police spokesman Comr. Sang Gede Sukawiyasa said Monday. “We are still collecting evidence.

“We will also confront the suspect with the victims to gather more testimonies,” he said.

Sumarjaya was alleged to have kidnapped and raped the girl Saturday.

It was reported the rapist had known the victim for about a month as Sumarjaya was a relative of the victim’s friend.

“The suspect asked the victim to meet him at 10 a.m. in front of a cassette shop on Jl. Gunung Subu, and the victim agreed,” Sukawiyasa said.

The suspect, who works as a security officer of a private company, allegedly took the victim to a hotel on Jl. Tunjung Sari and raped her.

The victim was then left at Senggol Tegal Market about an hour later after they met.

Denpasar has seen four child abduction cases over the last several months, all occurring in Monang Maning area.