Immigration Deportations of 19 Foreigners Linked to a Love-Scamming Syndicate in Tangerang

Immigration authorities uncovered an online fraud operation operating under a love-scamming modus operandi in Teluknaga, Tangerang Regency, Banten. Nineteen foreign nationals (WNA) were arrested and deported amid allegations of links to the syndicate. The head of the Class I Special Non-TPI Immigration Office in Tangerang, Hasanin, said the 19 foreigners were arrested at a Tangerang apartment on Friday (8 May 2026), at around 10:00 p.m. WIB. ‘After obtaining the information, we conducted field investigations and, after receiving information marked A1, we immediately provided a rapid response by moving to the target location and coordinating with the management and local security authorities to carry out immigration surveillance,’ Hasanin said in a written statement. He noted that the 19 foreigners consisted of 15 Chinese nationals, one Taiwanese national, one Malaysian, one Vietnamese, and one Cambodian. Immigration found communications indicating love scamming among the WNA. ‘Field observations suggest the 19 foreigners were involved in an online fraud syndicate using the love-scamming modus operandi, previously operating in Cambodia. We found travel history in the passports of all 19 foreigners indicating Cambodia, and conversations in a WhatsApp Group pointing to online fraud,’ said Bong Bong Prakoso Napitupulu, head of the Intelligence and Immigration Enforcement Division of the Tangerang Class I Special Non-TPI Immigration Office. Immigration noted that 16 of the foreigners held pre-investment visit permits, two held visas on arrival (VOA), and one held a visa-free entry facility. Tangerang Immigration also checked the guarantor companies for the foreigners and found information that several of the guarantor companies are suspected to be fictitious and not operating in accordance with the registered data. The operation was conducted as a preventive measure against online fraud using the love-scam modus operandi. In addition to arresting the foreigners, authorities seized items including 19 foreign passports, 32 mobile phones, 3 laptops, 28 Cambodian foreign worker registration cards, 1 rental agreement for a shop-house, and dozens of transaction records. ‘Based on examinations of the 19 foreign nationals and the evidence found, it is suspected that their previous activities in Cambodia involved online fraud, given that Cambodia is tightening access and closing space for scammers, prompting them to seek new loopholes in Indonesia,’ said Bong Bong. The foreigners are said to have been instructed not to cluster and to avoid Immigration checks, believed to be intended to avoid suspicion by Immigration officers. Under the selective policy principle and Article 75(1) of Law No. 6 of 2011 on Immigration, the 19 foreigners are deemed to potentially engage in activities that threaten public security and order. After coordinating with the Directorate General of Immigration and the Banten Regional Office, the 19 foreigners were deported on Tuesday (19 May) and detained.