41 foreign nationals charged over cross-border online fraud syndicate

The network carried out fraud by using false identities and spreading untrue electronic information to convince prospective victims.

Surabaya (ANTARA) - Forty-one foreign nationals (WNA) were charged with involvement in a cross-border online fraud syndicate targeting victims in Japan and China, at a hearing at the Surabaya District Court on Monday.

“The network carried out fraud by using false identities and spreading untrue electronic information to convince prospective victims,” said Public Prosecutor Damang Anubowo as he read the indictment at the Surabaya District Court.

Damang said the majority of the defendants were Chinese and Taiwanese nationals, while several other defendants were Japanese.

The case came to light after Japan’s Consulate General reported the suspected detention of two Japanese nationals who had lost contact in the Kertajaya area of Surabaya on 20 April 2026.

Surabaya Metropolitan Police then conducted an investigation and found the two Japanese nationals at a house on Jalan Dharmahusada Permai VII, Gubeng, Surabaya, on 22 April 2026.

The subsequent investigation led police to a number of other locations in Surabaya, including Jalan Embong Kenongo and the Darmo Permai area.

Police also pursued a number of foreign nationals allegedly linked to the network as far as Semarang and Surakarta.

According to the indictment, the network used various methods to deceive victims. Two victims in Japan, Kimura Miho and Nakamura Noriko, were allegedly defrauded by perpetrators posing as Rakuten Mobile customer service.

Meanwhile, three victims in China allegedly suffered losses amounting to hundreds of thousands of yuan. The perpetrators reportedly claimed to be security officials and accused the victims of involvement in money laundering.

The perpetrators also allegedly used screen-sharing applications to take over victims’ devices and access their bank accounts.

For their actions, the 41 defendants were charged under Article 492 in conjunction with Article 20 letter c of Law Number 1 of 2023 on the Criminal Code (KUHP).

The Public Prosecutor has also prepared an alternative indictment based on the Electronic Information and Transactions Law (UU ITE).