Police Unload Love Fraud Syndicate In Bali, 38 Indonesian Citizens Arrested
The police managed to uncover a love fraud syndicate operating in Bali and targeted a man from the United States. A total of 38 Indonesian citizens (WNI), including seven women, were arrested in the operation, said the police.
The disclosure of this case began with a report of suspicious activity on a rental house in Denpasar, the capital of Bali Province. From this investigation, the authorities managed to secure suspects suspected of being involved in international cyber crime syndicates.
"The suspects work as operators tasked with finding victims of love fraud, targeting an American man who has a Telegram account," said Bali Police Chief Inspector General Daniel Adityajaya, Thursday, June 12.
Their modus operandi is to pretend to be a woman using fake photos and identities to build emotional relationships with the victim. After communicating through the Telegram app, they sent a fake link used to steal sensitive data from victims.
According to police statement, the suspects received a fee of US$200 per month from someone who controlled this operation from Cambodia. They are tasked with stealing the victim's personal information for use in extortion or further fraud.
The arrests started from the initial nine suspects, who then developed to reveal the role of other suspects in the network. All suspects are Indonesian citizens and are now facing up to 12 years in prison under the Law on Information and Electronic Transactions (ITE).
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This case is part of the migration trend of cybercriminals to Southeast Asia, following the tightening of law enforcement by the Chinese government against domestic fraud networks.
In 2019, Indonesia also arrested 85 Chinese nationals and six Indonesian citizens for similar cases that deceived victims of millions of dollars. Meanwhile, in 2023, as many as 88 Chinese nationals were arrested in Batam, Riau Islands, for running an online-based sexual extortion syndicate targeting hundreds of victims in China, including public officials.