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View all search resultsPolice detain 44 people in Surabaya scam ring, mostly foreigners
The scamming syndicate also held two Japanese captives, who were forced to work as scam operators.
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Surabaya Police chief Sr. Comr. (third right) Luthfie Sulistiawan is flanked by Indonesian Interpol National Center Bureau (NCB) Transnational Crimes Department head Sr. Comr. Ricky Purnama (third left), Surabaya Police Crimes Investigation (Reskrim) unit chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Edy Herwiyanto (second) right and other officials hold pieces of evidence during a press conference in Surabaya on May 08, 2026. Surabaya Police have dismantled an international scamming ring, consisting of 44 suspects from China, Indonesia, Japan and Taiwan. (kompas.com/Azwa Safrina)
T
he police in Surabaya, East Java, have dismantled an international scamming ring consisting of 44 suspects from China, Indonesia, Japan and Taiwan. The ring was also holding two Japanese nationals, identified as Yuria Kikuchi and Shikaura Midori, captive in the city.
The investigation began in April following a report from the Japanese Consulate General in Surabaya about the suspected abduction and confinement of the two Japanese citizens. Detectives later found the victims in a rented house on Jl. Dharma Husada Permai VII, which was also used as a base for online fraud operations.
“At that time, the consulate general informed us about Japanese citizens who were allegedly kidnapped, confined and believed to be in Surabaya,” Surabaya Police chief Sr. Comr. Luthfie Sulistiawan told a press conference on Friday.
Seven suspects, including supervisors and scam operators, were arrested at the first location. An Indonesian suspect identified only as E had rented the house for two years. His testimony led police to another site on Jl. Embong Kenongo, previously occupied by 32 Chinese nationals engaged in scamming but which was since abandoned.
Read also: Immigration nets hundreds of foreigners at Batam scam center
The investigation expanded to hotels, shopping centers and another house on Jl. Darmo Permai I, where 19 suspects were detained, including 17 Chinese nationals and two Taiwanese.
Pursuit continued to Surakarta in neighboring Central Java, where police discovered 24 suitcases in an abandoned house, and to Bali, where five Taiwanese and six Chinese suspects were apprehended.
