Dr Richard Lee Detained at Metro Jaya Regional Police Detention Centre
Metro Jaya Police have officially detained Dr Richard Lee (DRL) in connection with a case of alleged consumer protection violations, the regional police said on Friday night, 6 March. The move followed four hours of intensive questioning, during which DRL was deemed uncooperative and to have impeded the investigation.
Public Relations Head Kombes Budi Hermanto said detention occurred after DRL underwent questioning from 13:00 to 17:00 with 29 questions. ‘On the basis of objective considerations, we detained at 21:50,’ he said in a statement on Friday.
He explained that the detention was prompted by DRL’s attitude, which officers said hindered the investigation. Police noted several procedural breaches by the cosmetic doctor. DRL did not attend an additional examination on 3 March 2026 without a clear reason, and instead was observed live-streaming on his TikTok account on the same day. In addition, he reportedly failed to fulfil mandatory reporting duties on two occasions, on Monday 23 February and Thursday 5 March.
‘The suspect absented himself without a clear explanation, whereas mandatory reporting is part of the legal procedure that must be complied with. This attitude we consider to hinder the investigation,’ Budi asserted.
Before being placed in the Metro Jaya Police Detention Centre, DRL underwent a health check by the police’s Biddokes team. Medical checks indicated the suspect’s physical condition was stable. ‘The checks covered blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and body temperature, all within normal limits. The suspect can carry out normal activities,’ Budi explained.
Prior to detention, police also ensured the suspect’s rights were protected by entrusting personal belongings not connected to the investigation to DRL’s legal counsel.
The case originated from a complaint by a consumer identified as Dr Amira Farahnaz alias Dr Samira alias ‘the detective doctor’, who purchased a number of branded cosmetic products owned by Richard Lee from several marketplaces between October and November 2024. The products included White Tomato, DNA Salmon, and Miss V Stem Cell by Athena Group, priced from hundreds of thousands rupiah to more than Rp1 million each.
After receipt, the products were alleged to have problems, including contents not matching the label, non-sterile conditions, and packaging suspected of being repacked. Based on investigative findings and a case conference, Metro Jaya Police designated Richard Lee as a suspect in the alleged consumer protection violations on 15 December 2025. (Faj/P-3)