House Speaker Urges Government Not to Let Indonesia Become a Stopover for Online Gambling Syndicates

House of Representatives Speaker Puan Maharani stated that the government must take preventive and anticipatory actions to prevent Indonesia from becoming a stopover for online gambling (judol) syndicates. She warned that no parties should turn Indonesia into a primary or transit location for such illegal activities. “Therefore, tightening or anticipation regarding this must be carried out,” Puan said in Jakarta on Tuesday (12/3/2025). Puan emphasised that crackdowns on judol syndicates should not be one-off but conducted periodically. “This is important to prevent it from spreading further,” she added. In a related development, 320 foreign nationals and one Indonesian citizen were arrested by Bareskrim Polri in the Hayam Wuruk case. The arrests of the foreigners took place on Thursday (7/5/2026). Examinations of the suspects are ongoing. The perpetrators were caught red-handed during online gambling operations. The arrested individuals include 57 Chinese nationals, 228 Vietnamese, 11 Laotians, 13 Myanmarese, three each from Malaysia and Cambodia, and five Thais. Each foreigner played roles in the online gambling crimes, which served as their livelihood. Police seized various evidence, including safes, passports, mobile phones, laptops, computers, and cash in various foreign currencies. Investigations revealed approximately 75 internet domains and official websites suspected of being used for online gambling. These domains and websites used specific character combinations and gambling-related variable labels to evade blocking. The perpetrators face charges under Article 426 and/or Article 607 in conjunction with Articles 20 and/or 21 of Law No. 1 of 2023 on the Criminal Code and Law No. 1 of 2026 on Criminal Adjustments. In the fight against judol, the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) revealed that illicit online gambling funds totalled Rp 40.3 trillion from January to March 2026, with deposits reaching Rp 10.6 trillion. PPATK Head Ivan Yustiavandana commented on the exposure of the judol mafia in Hayam Wuruk, West Jakarta. Ivan denied that PPATK was caught off guard, noting that most victims of the syndicate are from abroad, while PPATK’s mandate focuses on protecting Indonesian citizens. “Not caught off guard at all; our focus is on domestic judol players,” Ivan told Republika on Monday (11/5/2026).