Father Also Named Suspect in Batam Child Abuse Case After Faking Help Request

Police have named a second suspect in the abuse case of a 9-year-old girl in Batam, Kepulauan Riau. The biological father of the victim, identified as RL, has been named a suspect alongside the stepmother, VJH (38).

Sagulung Police Chief, Iptu Husnul Afkar, stated that the decision to name RL a suspect was made after investigators held a case conference and found evidence of his involvement in the violence. “He has been named a suspect. The case conference has just concluded,” Husnul said on Monday (22/6/2026).

According to Husnul, the investigation revealed that RL not only knew about the abuse but also participated in beating the child on a previous occasion. “Based on the examination, the biological father also hit the victim in a prior incident, and this has been corroborated,” he stated. The father’s involvement was further substantiated by the results of the victim’s medical examination, which showed injuries consistent with violence inflicted by him. “There are scars that match the victim’s visum results. This is part of the evidence we have,” he added.

The case came to light after the father sought donations for his child’s medical treatment from an online drivers’ community in Batam. The Chairman of the Komando Driver Andalan (Komando) Batam community, Feryandi Tarigan, explained that the father initially requested assistance through a volunteer group, claiming his child was injured after falling near a bathroom. “So, the father is our member. He sent a request for help for food, saying his child fell near the bathroom. But when I saw the photo, I wondered how the child could be so swollen. We became suspicious because the injuries were so severe,” Feryandi said on Saturday (20/6/2026).

The stepmother, VJH, was previously named a suspect and admitted to abusing the child out of emotional distress and frustration.