Aussie teacher accused of stealing laptops from shoppers at a supermarket in Bali
An Australian teacher could spend five years behind bars after she was 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 containing a laptop from outside Popular Deli, a North Kuta supermarket, on Wednesday morning.
Ms Crimmins was staying at an address in North Kuta, but it is unclear whether she was living in Bali or on holiday at the time.
Badung police spokesperson Putu Sukarma said the victims left their bags in the seating area of the Popular Deli supermarket at 7.30am.
When they returned at 9am, both bags were gone.
‘The suspect did that [allegedly] I retrieved two laptops from two bags that had been kept in the seating area by the owner for some time,” said Mr Sukarma.
Following a report to the North Kuta Police Station, police investigated the scene of the alleged theft and checked CCTV footage.
Vanessa Louise Crimmins, 45, from Paddington in Sydney’s east, is accused of taking two backpacks each containing a laptop from outside a supermarket in North Kuta, Bali
Ms Crimmins is said to have stolen a MacBook Air and an HP laptop (both pictured) from the seating area of Popular Deli in a supermarket in Bali’s North Kuta on Wednesday morning.
“We may find out that the perpetrator is a foreign woman,” police said.
Police said the HP laptop and MacBook Air were allegedly stolen from Ardi Nurcahyadi, 42, from Jakarta and 24-year-old university student Ni Nyoman Ari Purwaningsih from Denpasar.
After following Ms Crimmins to her accommodation in Tibubeneng village in North Kuta, police are said to have discovered both laptops inside.
If Ms Crimmins is charged with theft under Article 362 of the Indonesian Criminal Code, she could face a maximum prison sentence of five years.
However, Ms Crimmins could walk free due to a unique quirk in the Indonesian legal system if the alleged victims choose to forgive her.