An Australian teacher could spend five years behind bars after being arrested for allegedly stealing two laptops from a supermarket in Bali.
Vanessa Louise Crimmins, 45, from Paddington, in Sydney’s east, is accused of stealing two backpacks each containing a laptop outside Popular Deli, a supermarket in North Kuta, on Wednesday morning.
Ms Crimmins was staying at an address in northern Kuta, however it is unclear if she lives in Bali or was on holiday at the time.
Badung police spokesman Putu Sukarma said the victims had left their suitcases in the seating area of the Popular Deli supermarket at 7:30 a.m.
When they returned at 9 a.m., both bags were gone.
“The suspect (allegedly) took two laptops from two bags that the owner left in the living room some time ago,” Sukarma said.
Following a report to North Kuta Police Station, police investigated the scene of the alleged robbery and checked CCTV footage.
Ms Crimmins can allegedly be seen walking towards the backpacks while looking around, before casually picking up one bag and then returning for the second.
Vanessa Louise Crimmins, 45, from Paddington, in Sydney’s east, is accused of carrying two backpacks containing a laptop each outside a supermarket in North Kuta, Bali.
Ms Crimmins allegedly stole a MacBook Air and an HP laptop (both pictured) from the Popular Deli lounge inside a supermarket in North Kuta in Bali on Wednesday morning.
“We can find out that the perpetrator is a foreign woman,” the police said.
Police said the HP laptop and MacBook Air were allegedly stolen from Ardi Nurcahyadi, 42, from Jakarta, and Denpasar University student Ni Nyoman Ari Purwaningsih, 24.
After tracking Ms Crimmins to her accommodation in Tibubeneng Village in northern Kuta, police allegedly discovered both laptops inside.
If charged with theft under Article 362 of the Indonesian Penal Code, Ms Crimmins could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
However, Crimmins could walk free thanks to a unique quirk of the Indonesian justice system if the alleged victims decide to forgive her.
