TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – The Jakarta Metropolitan Police is investigating criminal networks behind a recent rise in street robbery cases, locally known as begal, across Jakarta and its surrounding areas.
Chief of the General Crime Directorate at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police, Commissioner Iman Imanuddin, said several forms of street crime have shown an upward trend in recent weeks.
“Therefore, we have formed a Begal Hunter Team,” Iman said during a press conference at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police headquarters on Friday, May 22, 2026.
According to Iman, investigators are currently conducting forensic examinations on electronic devices and mobile phones seized from arrested suspects. The examinations are being carried out at the Indonesian National Police forensic laboratory.
The investigation aims to uncover the wider criminal network linked to the rising number of street robbery cases in the capital region.
“We are also investigating whether there are indications beyond ordinary criminal acts that we have uncovered so far,” Iman said.
The Jakarta Metropolitan Police recorded 1,283 reports of street crime between May 1 and May 22, 2026. Armed robbery accounted for the largest number of cases, with 651 incidents reported.
This was followed by 396 cases of ordinary theft, 209 motor vehicle theft cases, and 27 cases of violent theft.
“We have uncovered 870 crime scenes within the jurisdiction of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police,” Iman said.
The newly established Begal Hunter Team is continuing to investigate unsolved cases.
“There are still 413 cases that we are working on,” he said.
Police have arrested 173 suspects in connection with the cases. Of that number, 38 were apprehended by the Begal Hunter Team from the General Crime Directorate, while 135 others were arrested by district police units.
A total of 100 suspects came from the Greater Jakarta area, known locally as Jabodetabek (which includes Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi), while the remaining 73 suspects were from outside the region.
Since the beginning of May, police have seized 466 pieces of evidence. The confiscated items include 84 electronic devices, 69 motorcycles and cars, laptops, eight firearms and ammunition, T-shaped lock-picking keys commonly used in vehicle thefts, and 45 bladed weapons.
Police also secured another 240 items of evidence, including clothing, CCTV footage, and stolen goods.
Authorities said suspects could face charges under several articles of Indonesia’s Criminal Code under Law No. 1 of 2023. The charges carry prison sentences ranging from five years to 15 years, depending on the severity of the offense.
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