Chronology of Alleged Food Theft at a Kemang Restaurant: Nabilah O'Brien's Version
Owner of a restaurant in Kemang, Mampang Prapatan, South Jakarta, Nabilah O’Brien recounted the origins of the case involving alleged food theft by a married couple. The matter began when the couple, identified by the initials Z and E, placed an order at Nabilah’s restaurant, and 14 food and beverage items were served.
Their actions escalated when they allegedly intimidated staff by entering the kitchen area, which is a restricted area for customers, and provoked a commotion. The couple then punched the head of the kitchen, Abdul Hamid, and punched the refrigeration unit while threatening to vandalise the restaurant. They also subjected staff to verbal abuse.
At around midnight they left without paying. A member of staff, Rahmat, attempted to pursue payment using an electronic data capture (EDC) machine, but the couple ignored it.
Subsequently, Nabilah posted CCTV footage of the incident on 20 September on her personal social media account. The post reportedly drew positive responses from many people, including many business operators who thanked her for raising awareness and helping them be more cautious.
Following the posting, Nabilah issued a somasi on 24 September seeking an open public apology and acknowledgment of the actions by Z and E directed at the staff.
“Our client is simply seeking a public and personal apology to our employees,” she said.
On 25 September, Nabilah reported the matter to the Mampang Prapatan Police over alleged theft. Two days later, on 27 September, Nabilah was served with a counter-somasi by Z and E, which admitted that they had taken the food and drinks.
“They answered the somasi with a counter-somasi, admitting that they did take the items,” she added. In the counter-somasi, Z and E demanded IDR 1 billion, claiming losses from the CCTV posting.
“There is something funny here, because they counter-sued our client with a demand of IDR 1 billion for losses they claim from the posting,” she noted.
On 30 September, Z and E reported Nabilah to the Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) for alleged violations of the ITE Law, defamation and libel. Mediation between the parties occurred on 30 September and again on 17 November at both Mampang Police and Bareskrim but failed to reach an agreement.
“We held two mediations facilitated by Bareskrim and by the police, and there was no settlement because their proposal for peace was not sensible,” she said.
Z and E reportedly sought IDR 1 billion as a condition for peace. On 18 November, Nabilah sent a draft peace agreement unconditionally, seeking withdrawal of reports to the Police and Bareskrim.
“In addition to the IDR 1 billion, our client was asked to apologise to the entire public, to the families, and even to acknowledge that our client had attacked the honour of Mr Z and Mrs E and had engaged in defamation, and to do things that the CCTV evidence already shows are true,” she said.
Without a peace agreement, investigations continued, and on 24 February Z and E were named suspects following a case titling procedure by the Mampang Prapatan Police.
“We have provided six witnesses, CCTV footage, and copies of the somasi; Mr Z was named a suspect on 24 February 2026. However, on that same date my client was still being questioned for additional statements at Bareskrim,” she said.
A few days later, Nabilah herself was named a suspect on 28 February 2026. Goldie described this as odd because the suspect designation appeared to occur very quickly, given that the case review had only taken place two days earlier.
“It turns out the case review occurred on 26 February, and my client received the suspect designation letter on Saturday, 28 February 2026. That seems unusual, as the approval process for naming a suspect is not so straightforward,” she added.