An owner of a warteg (a modest stall or kiosk selling budget meals) in the industrial area of Cikarang, West Java’s Bekasi regency, was the target of a mob’s wrath after he was accused of raping his teenage employee.
The rape reportedly occurred last Sunday at around 5.30am at the warteg. The owner, identified by his initials EW, entered the 17-year-old victim’s room at the eatery. He pushed her until she fell down before proceeding to rape her.
“After he was done committing [the rape], the suspect walked out of the room and picked up a knife at the kitchen and threatened the victim, ‘Watch out, if you scream, I’ll kill [you],’” North Cikarang sub-precinct chief Mustakim said yesterday.
Soon after, the victim made a phone call to her family, who live nearby. Her family and neighbors soon arrived at the crime scene and they managed to secure EW. What happened next was filmed, footage of which has gone viral (Warning: Graphic violence):
Tuwek uteke ga nalar asu pic.twitter.com/bUEy3EQrWm
— Mas Adem (@ndagels) February 10, 2022
In the video, EW was being interrogated by angry locals, who were demanding that he admit to his crime. The cries of the victim can be heard throughout the video.
“I want to take responsibility, I would like to marry [the victim],” EW pleaded in the video, which incited anger from the crowd, who felt that he was rubbing salt on their collective wound from the vile crime he allegedly committed.
At one point in the video, a man was seen punching and kicking EW in the face. EW then confessed that he raped his victim once, and that he’s willing to go to prison to answer for his crime. Mustakim said that EW’s motive was lust because he hadn’t seen his wife for a long time.
Out of shame, EW reportedly attempted to kill himself by stabbing a knife to his stomach five times. The victim’s family members stopped him before he did more damage to himself. EW is currently undergoing treatment at the National Police Hospital in East Jakarta.
EW has since charged with sexual violence towards a minor under Indonesia’s Child Protection Law, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
