321 Foreign Nationals in West Jakarta Online Gambling Syndicate Using Tourist Visas, Already Overstaying

Director of General Criminal Acts (Dirtipidum) of Bareskrim Polri, Brigadier General Wira Satya Triputra, revealed that the perpetrators were caught red-handed while operating the online gambling site last Thursday (7/5/2026). “We arrested the perpetrators red-handed, meaning they were carrying out operational activities or online gambling activities. From the perpetrators we secured, the number reached 321 people,” Wira told reporters at the location on Saturday (9/5/2026). He detailed that the majority of the perpetrators were from Vietnam, numbering 228 people, followed by 57 from China, 13 from Myanmar, 11 from Laos, 5 from Thailand, and 3 each from Malaysia and Cambodia. The perpetrators conducted this illegal business in a structured manner, utilising cross-border electronic facilities. They entered Indonesia not for legal work, but using tourist visit permits. “They all used tourist permits, none for work,” he said. Wira stated that based on initial examinations, this syndicate had been operating for approximately two months. The perpetrators rented a floor in the building as a centre for organised cross-border digital operations. “The perpetrators generally live in areas around this tower. So the upper floor is purely used for online gambling operational activities,” Wira said. Although the operations were in Jakarta, police stated that the data control centre or server for the online gambling site was located abroad. “To date, we are still tracing based on the existing web; this server is located abroad,” he said. On the same occasion, Secretary of NCB Interpol Indonesia Divhubinter Polri, Brigadier General Untung Widyatmoko, highlighted the residence permit violations of the perpetrators. He stated that these foreign nationals entered Indonesia using tourist visas valid for only 30 days. “For visa-free or tourist visas, immigration only allows 30 days. That means if they have been here for 2 months, the individuals have overstayed. They have committed immigration criminal acts,” Untung said. Due to the incident, Untung assured that Polri has coordinated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Directorate General of Immigration. Polri proposes the formation of a special task force to handle countries on the Subject of Interest (SOI) list. “If left unchecked, if only Polri conducts actions, it certainly will not be effective. We need to sit together to consolidate for the formation of a task force,” Untung said. “Because if left unchecked, if only Polri conducts actions, it certainly will not be effective,” he added.