TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Unggung Cahyono has ordered his personnel to shoot down violent motorbike robbers—locally known as begal—on sight in the capital.

“There have been seven robbers shot to death in the Jakarta Police jurisdiction to date,” he said after attending a terror case conference at the Bekasi City Police headquarters on Thursday, February 26, 2015.

Unggung said motorbike robbers who operated in his jurisdiction, including in Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi, could be categorized as sadistic as they were armed with various weapons—from bladed weapons to firearms.

“They don’t hesitate to injure victims who put up a fight. They even shot a policeman in a chase,” he said.

To date, the Jakarta Police have nabbed 29 begals in Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi. “Seven others were gunned down because they resisted arrest and risked others’ lives,” he said.

From the arrests, the police seized as evidence 120 stolen motorbikes, 21 stolen cars, 14 firearms—comprising 12 homemade guns, an airsoft gun and an organic firearm—and 140 bladed weapons.

Unggung added 12 of the 29 arrested perpetrators hailed from Sumatra. “The pursuit was carried out up to the hometowns of the criminals. The ones from Sumatra were operating at 11 crime scenes in Depok and Tangerang,” he said.

Unggung said the Jakarta Police were paying serious attention to the capital’s begal phenomenon and would take stern action to address it.

ANTARA