Depok Firefighter Claims to Know Identity of Threatener but Refuses to Report
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — A member of Depok’s fire service, Khairul Umam, has acknowledged that he knows the identity of the person who sent threatening messages to him following his content about the function of protective helmets. However, he has declined to publicise this information as he fears it may breach Indonesian law.
“But the person who gave me the data told me not to spread it yet. I’m worried about violating the Information and Electronic Transactions Law, and besides, it’s only registration number data,” Khairul said when contacted on Monday (2 March 2026).
Khairul assessed that the threats he received do not pose a direct danger to him. “As for why I haven’t reported it, it’s because the threat is still online and only involves things like sharing my address, that sort of thing. I’m treating it as something that will blow over,” he said.
He will consider taking legal action if the threats escalate to direct action that threatens his personal safety. “Only if it becomes offline, like someone showing up at my house or physical harassment, will I report it then,” Khairul added.
Previously, Police Inspector General Auditor Kombes Pol Manang Soebeti of the Itwasum division of the National Police stated that the identity of the threatener is not a police officer. This statement addressed public speculation following the viral spread of Khairul’s account of receiving intimidation after uploading content explaining the function of helmets as personal protective equipment (PPE).
The content was interpreted and linked as an indirect criticism related to the death of a student following assault by members of the Mobile Brigade in Tual, Southeast Maluku. Manang explained that the identity confirmation could be established through data obtained using the threatener’s WhatsApp phone number.
Based on the disclosed identity data, the threatener is a man with the initials WG, born around the 1980s, employed as a day labourer. According to the data, WG is unmarried and lives in Pangadangan hamlet, Subang Regency, West Java.
Manang suggested that WG’s actions were likely merely a prank, as the intimidating messages were sent only once or twice. Moreover, a phone number was deemed the easiest access point for a casual threatener. “This was not actually intended as terrorism since it only happened once or twice. Real terrorism would be intensive, such as spamming or physical visits,” Manang explained.