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83 Indonesians fall victim to human trafficking to European countries

The victims were promised jobs as ship crew or restaurant servers in various European countries, such as Spain, Portugal, Greece and Poland

News Desk (The Jakarta Post)
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Sat, June 21, 2025 Published on Jun. 20, 2025 Published on 2025-06-20T12:29:51+07:00

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83 Indonesians fall victim to human trafficking to European countries Bogus job recruiters: Two suspects allegedly involved in a human trafficking ring (second left and second right, front row) are displayed on Thursday while the Central Java Police's General Crimes Directorate chief Sr. Comr. Dwi Subagio (left) and chief spokesman Sr. Comr. Artanto (center) hold envelopes of evidence in Semarang, Central Java. (Antara.com/Central Java Police)

T

he Central Java Police have exposed a human trafficking ring accused of deceiving Indonesian job seekers and sending them to European countries without proper documentation.

Detectives from the Central Java Police’s General Crimes Directorate arrested two people identified as KU and NU, from Tegal and Brebes, as suspects.

The two suspects were arrested after allegedly swindling 83 people by promising to send the victims to work abroad legally, causing a loss of around Rp 5.2 billion (US$316,700), said General Crimes Directorate chief Sr. Comr. Dwi Subagio.

Dwi said the arrests were made after two victims, identified as AM and AKB, filed police reports.

“The modus operandi was promising that the victims would work as ship crew or restaurant servers in Spain with a salary between €1,200 [US$1,383] and €1,500 per month,” Dwi said during a case expose at the Central Java Police headquarters on Thursday, as quoted by kompas.com.

“The victims are mostly from various regions in Central Java and were sent to several countries, such as Spain, Portugal, Greece and Poland.”

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The suspects also promised that they would manage and apply for the workers’ residence permits in the countries of destination. However, the victims were forced to work in improper conditions and without legal documents, Dwi said.

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