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Denpasar. Police in Bali are under pressure to put an end to a spate of robberies in which criminals in Denpasar and surrounding areas have broken into safes and made off with hundreds of millions of rupiah.

The most recent robbery took place at the education quality assurance agency in Denpasar early on Thursday morning. Four masked thieves broke into a safe and took Rp 300 million ($32,700).

“The security guard was bound and gagged,” Nyoman Sucita, the head of the agency, said, adding that the thieves left behind Rp 2.2 million, ostensibly for the security guard.

“The money that was stolen was for our employee payroll,” he added.

Denpasar Police spokesman Ida Bagus Sarjana said police were investigating the crime and looking into whether the incident was linked to a string of similar robberies.

“We’re still questioning staff at the agency and the security guard,” he said.

Bali Police crimes unit head Slamet Riyanto said police had determined the identities of the thieves, but the investigation had been thwarted because the suspects were being protected and hidden by area residents.

“We’re closely monitoring their movements and will soon name the suspects,” he said.

According to police reports, Thursday’s robbery was the 22nd safe-cracking crime in the area in the last six months.

In December, criminals stole Rp 55 million from a safe at the Denpasar religious affairs agency, Rp 3.5 million from a safe at the Denpasar office of consumer goods giant Unilever, and Rp 100 million from the Kuta office of the industry training center.

Between August and November last year, there were 19 reported robberies from safes in the area.