Museum worker accused of selling ancient statues

Police arrested a museum curator in Indonesia for allegedly selling five ancient statues to a local businessman and filling the gaps in the collection with fakes, media reports said today.

Three other staff members at the museum in Surakarta city on Java island are also suspects in the alleged scam, reported The Jakarta Post and other media.

Police said a German national may also have been involved, the Post reported without giving any more details.

Authorities were not immediately available for comment.

Thieves have long targeted Indonesian antiquities left over from the country's Hindu and Buddhist era.

The objects - mostly statues and temple reliefs - are in demand by wealthy locals as well as collectors on the international market.