Victim of Theft Confesses, Even Becomes a Suspect After Securing the Perpetrator Who is Still Under Age

Niat mengamankan pelaku pencurian justru berujung petaka. Seorang pedagang warung kini harus berurusan dengan hukum setelah ditetapkan sebagai tersangka dalam kasus dugaan kekerasan terhadap anak.

This case became the focus of public attention after the trader's wife uploaded her heart's outpouring through a video that went viral on social media.

Responding to the controversy, Head of Public Relations of the Metro Jaya Police, Kombes Pol Budi Hermanto, gave an explanation. He said that the alleged abuse occurred at the Villa Mutiara Mas II Housing, Tarumajaya, on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at around 12.30 WIB.

According to Budi, the incident began when a child with the initials R (11) came to a stall to buy snacks. The owner of the stall with the initials U then suspected that the child stole money, which led to acts of violence.

"U menjewer, memukul, dan menampar anak korban," kata Budi dalam keterangannya, Kamis, 21 Januari 2026.

After the incident, the victim was taken to the neighborhood security post. However, at that location, U again slapped the victim, causing the child's nose to bleed. The incident was witnessed by security officers and the local RT chairman.

"At the security post, U again slapped the victim's child until the victim's nose bled. The incident was seen by security officers and Mr. RT," he said.

Budi added, the victim's mother who came to the location found her son in a state of injury and bruises, with his nose still bleeding. The next day, Thursday, March 20, 2025, the victim's parents reported the incident to the police.

"Furthermore, on December 11, 2025, U was named a suspect," said Budi.

In this case, the owner of the stall is suspected of violating Article 80 of Law Number 35 of 2014 concerning Child Protection, as an amendment to Law Number 23 of 2002. However, investigators have opened a room for resolution through the restorative justice channel.

"Investigators invited both parties on Monday, January 26, 2026, for mediation in the framework of restorative justice (RJ)," he said.

Meanwhile, the wife of the owner of the stall denied the allegation of violence as conveyed by the police. He said that the incident began with the rampant theft at their stall. In a week, theft occurred up to three times with a total loss of around IDR 1.3 million.

"Three times a week. The worst, the cans where the money was taken and drained were all drained. It was only discovered during the fourth incident," he said.

He explained that local residents caught the boy while he was allegedly acting at his stall. The boy had fled before he was finally secured and taken to the neighborhood security post.

"Finally he confessed. After being shouted at and pressured, the child confessed. I then took him to the security post, it happened to be there was a RT Pak there too," he said.

The confession, according to him, was witnessed by a number of residents and security officers. The question then arose when the boy's family did not accept the arrest and accused his son of being violent to the point of bruising in several parts of the body.

The case was also reported to the police. Mediation efforts had been made at the RT level, but the discussion shifted from the alleged theft to the accusation of violence.

"Strangely, because of this case, they said their good name was tarnished. Their son was said to be battered, bruised, bruised. But who made the bruises?" he said.

The boy's family then demanded compensation on the grounds of mental recovery, long-term medical expenses, and reputation recovery. The total claim is said to reach Rp. 50 million.

Because he was unable to meet the demands, the case continued to the legal realm. The husband of the owner of the stall was finally called by the police and was named a suspect.

"In the peace, Rp50 million was requested. We couldn't afford it, even though it was raised again. Finally, this case continued and my husband was named a suspect," he said.

The family of the trader admitted to being shocked and feeling intimidated. They emphasized that they had never reported the alleged theft from the beginning because they considered the condition of the boy's family, including the victim's mother who was pregnant at the time.

Now, the husband of the owner of the stall is threatened with imprisonment of up to 3.5 years and a fine of tens of millions of rupiah. The family hopes to receive legal protection and justice for the case, which they value, starting from efforts to protect the stall from theft.

"Please help legally. I as a citizen of Bekasi ask for your attention. I'm sorry if this complaint is disturbing, but I hope there will be a response," he concluded.