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Two suspected con artists arrested in North Sumatra
“The scam syndicate consists of four people, two have already been arrested. Another two, one of whom is a foreigner, are still at large," Adj. Sr. Comr. Nugroho Dwi Karyanto, head of the Asahan precinct police in North Sumatra, told the press on Tuesday.
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Two suspected members of a scam syndicate have been arrested by the crime unit of the Asahan precinct police in North Sumatra after allegedly pulling a foreign currency scam. (Shutterstock/BortN66)
T
wo suspected members of a scam syndicate have been arrested by the crime unit of the Asahan precinct police in North Sumatra after allegedly pulling a foreign currency scam.
The syndicate had allegedly been operating for years in several major cities in Indonesia.
The two suspects, identified as ES and RS, were arrested in Soekarno Hatta Airport in Banten on Monday after allegedly pulling the scam in Asahan.
ES, 43, is a resident of Metro Lampung, while RS, 51, lives in Jakarta.
Head of the Asahan precinct police, Adj. Sr. Comr. Nugroho Dwi Karyanto, thanked the Banten Police general crime unit for helping apprehend the suspects.
Nugroho said one victim, Rumondang, 61, who lives in Asahan, reported that she had lost more than Rp 132 million (US$9,247.50) to the scammers.
“The scam syndicate consists of four people, two have already been arrested. Another two, one of whom is a foreigner, are still at large,” Nugroho told the press at the Asahan Police station on Tuesday.
He went on to say that the suspected scammers had operated in seven provinces, adding that their modus operandi was promising victims significant profits if they did business with them.
In one case, the scam syndicate allegedly convinced a victim to buy 65 bills of Brazilian real worth Rp 132 million plus several pieces of gold and diamond jewelry, said Nugroho. The syndicate scammed the victim by promising him that the Brazilian real bills were worth Rp 600 million.
The alleged scam involved role playing.
The scenario started with the foreign national, who is still at large, approaching the victim by asking him for directions to the nearest money changer. Shortly after, RS joined the conversation. The victim was then led by the two con artists to the money changer.
In the middle of their trip, however, another scammer, ES, who pretended to be a banker, convinced the three to come with him instead, changing their destination from the initial money exchange to a bank, in which the crime took place.
Nugroho said the suspects faced prosecution under Article 378 of the Criminal Code on scams, which carried a maximum punishment of four years' imprisonment. (gis)
