Bareskrim Names Five Suspects in Batam Blackout Case

The Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) of the Indonesian National Police has named five suspects in connection with an alleged electricity disruption that caused widespread power cuts on the islands of Batam and Bintan, in the Riau Islands. Bareskrim said four of the suspects are from PLN Batam.

Investigators said the disruption began when a wild animal, a monkey, entered the area around Transformer 1 at the Sei Harapan substation, triggering a short circuit while the protection system failed to work properly. The blackout was reported on Monday, 12 October 2026.

Brigadier General Moh Irhamni, director of Bareskrim’s Special Crimes Directorate, said the five suspects comprised four PLN Batam personnel identified by the initials RB, ZR, DA and AWD, and a contractor identified as AEP.

“The four PLN suspects allegedly failed to carry out their duties to ensure the substation area was secure, allowing a wild animal to enter a site containing high-voltage equipment,” Irhamni said, as quoted by Antara on Tuesday, 20 October 2026.

The contractor suspect is alleged to have been responsible for maintaining the security fence, which was supposed to be electrified to prevent wild animals from entering. Irhamni said investigators had questioned 25 witnesses and had consulted criminal-law experts and a forensic laboratory team to establish the cause of the disruption and each party’s role.

“At the time of the incident, the fence that was supposed to be electrified was switched off. It could therefore be jumped over, allowing the animal to enter the substation compound,” he said.

Commissioner Henry Siahaan, deputy head of the Fire and Explosion Investigation Sub-Directorate at Bareskrim’s Forensic Laboratory Centre, said the team examined the scene and evidence from 13 to 21 October 2026. Evidence examined included a busbar plate, pieces of conductor, a trip-lockout device and a Buchholz pipe.

He said the examination found damage and burn marks on the upper part of Transformer 1. The monkey that entered the area is believed to have triggered a short circuit between the 150-kilovolt (kV) and 20-kV sides.

Laboratory tests found that hair samples on the Buchholz pipe matched samples from a monkey found dead at the scene. The trip-lockout device, which should help protect the system during a fault, was also found not to have worked properly.

“A dead monkey was found and is suspected of causing a short circuit in Transformer 1 at the Sei Harapan substation. During the examination of the Buchholz pipe evidence, hair was found, and it matched the monkey’s hair,” he said.

The failures caused the disruption to spread until power plants disconnected from the system, triggering widespread outages on Batam and Bintan. Investigators estimate state losses in the case at Rp57.3 billion.

The suspects face criminal charges under provisions including Article 319 of Law No. 1/2023 on the Criminal Code and Article 51(1) of the Electricity Law. The penalties will depend on which provisions are applied and what is proven in the case.