Abducted maid found 400km away

Thursday October 18, 2007MYT 4:07:06 PM

MIRI: The Indonesian maid abducted by a gang of armed robbers during a robbery at a contractor’s house in Bakun on Monday has been found unharmed in Bintulu town, 400km from where she was taken.

The maid, in her early 20s, was found early yesterday morning, apparently dumped by the robbers on a road near the town centre.

Five robbers, armed with shotguns and samurai swords, had robbed the contractor, whose house was in a remote oil palm plantation near the Bakun hydroelectric dam project site in Belaga district, of more than RM20,000 in cash and belongings. They abducted the maid before escaping in a car.

Sources said the robbers had initially demanded another RM20,000 from the contractor, who is his late 30s, for the safe return of the maid but he did not entertain the ransom demand.
They apparently panicked and released the maid after they had escaped to Bintulu following a massive manhunt by the police.

Belaga police chief ASP Mohamed Rizal, who led a team of investigators to Bintulu to join in the hunt for the robbers, said Thursday that the maid was unharmed but declined to give further details.