Interpol Fugitive Arrested at Bali Airport While Attempting to Flee on Private Jet
An Australian fugitive wanted by Interpol failed to leave Bali using a private jet after being caught using a false identity to deceive immigration officers at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport on Saturday (6/6/2026). He was arrested by the immigration team.
“We emphasise that there is no room for fugitives or transnational criminals to use Indonesia as a hiding place,” said Head of the Ngurah Rai Immigration Office, Bugie Kurniawan, in a press release on Thursday (11/6/2026).
Immigration officers from the Class I Ngurah Rai Office initially conducted checks on passengers of the private jet CAPA Jet, flight number N917CJ, at the South Terminal of Ngurah Rai Airport at around 10:00 p.m. local time. The private jet was scheduled to fly the Denpasar-Maputo, Mozambique route.
CAPA Jet planned to depart with three crew members and four foreign national passengers: ARR from Portugal, GAM and FMJ from Brazil, and GS from Italy.
During the inspection, officers discovered that GAM had no entry records or valid residence permit in Indonesia. This finding prompted the officers to delay the aircraft’s departure for further investigation.
However, before the deeper inspection could take place, all passengers secretly boarded the aircraft and prepared for take-off. Immigration then coordinated with airport authorities to stop the flight. The aircraft, which had already moved towards the runway, was ordered to return to the VIP Terminal.
During a sweep of the aircraft, officers found GAM hiding in the toilet. The other three passengers were in the cabin.
Further examination revealed that the Brazilian passport used by GAM was counterfeit. The true identity of the 55-year-old man was identified as AP, an Australian citizen born in Whyalla.
A search of the immigration system showed that AP was on the Interpol wanted list with a 100% identity match. Based on information from the National Central Bureau (NCB) Canberra, AP is suspected of involvement in transnational criminal activities and is being sought by international law enforcement.
Interpol documents describe AP as a key figure in a Transnational Serious Organised Crime (TSOC) network and a senior member of a motorcycle gang in Australia.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) stated that AP is responsible for several large-scale narcotics smuggling attempts into Australia. He has long evaded authorities and is believed to have attempted to flee using illegally obtained travel documents.
The case is now being handled jointly with the Directorate of Narcotics Crime at the Indonesian National Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim Polri) and the Police International Relations Division. Coordination is also underway with the AFP and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to investigate AP’s alleged involvement in transnational criminal networks.