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travel agent has been reported to the Surakarta Police for allegedly defrauding thousands of people who paid to go on haj and umrah (minor pilgrimage).

Would-be pilgrims filed reports against PT Ustmaniyah Hannien Tour after they paid Rp 19 million to Rp 23 million each to go on haj or umrah but were kept waiting.

“Some 1,800 people have filed reports. The number could grow as we develop the case. Total losses could reach Rp 40 billion [US$2.8 million],” Surakarta Police chief Sr. Cmr. Ribut Hari Wibowo said on Tuesday.

A woman called Rahmawati said she paid Rp 50 million for two people in September 2016 and was promised she could depart for umrah in February 2017.

“But we have not yet left,” she said.

Rahmawati was among 45 clients who filed police reports in September last year.

Hannien Tour opened offices in shopping malls in 10 cities across the country. Its marketing agents promoted its services by offering a 20 percent discount.

The police arrested suspects Farid Rosyidin, the director of the company, and company treasurer Avianto Boedhy Satya in Cibinong, Bogor, West Java, on Dec. 22. Dozens of the company’s customers visited the Surakarta Police headquarters on Tuesday in the hope of getting a refund or confirmation of their pilgrimages.

The police are investigating where the customers’ payments went, Surakarta Police criminal investigation unit chief Comr. Agus Puryadi said.

“We have charged the suspects with fraud and money laundering. We have also asked the clients to be patient as we are investigating the case,” he said.