Layered Charges for Batam Casino Gambling Boss
The Indonesian National Police (Polri) raided casino gambling activity in Batam, Riau Islands (Kepri). The casino was located at Nine Stage Lounge and Bar, Ruko Nagoya Indah Blok B2 Number 9, Batu Selicin.
In the raid, 197 people were detained by police. The raid followed an investigation lasting around two to three months by the Directorate of General Crimes (Dittipidum) of the Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) Polri.
“This action began not only from public information, but also from information from my colleagues in Batam and from the media. We then took a step to raid or take action against casino-type gambling activity,” said Deputy Chief of Bareskrim Polri, Inspector General Nunung Syaifuddin, at Barelang Police Station on Sunday (16/8/2026).
The raid was carried out at exactly 9.30 pm Western Indonesia Time on Saturday (15/8). Among the hundreds of people detained, one acted as the owner, a man with the initial A.
Other roles detained included two managers, five cashiers, one supervisor, 25 chip exchangers, 65 dealers, and two marketing staff. The remaining 96 people were players.
“Of the 96 players, 86 were Indonesian citizens, while 10 others were foreign nationals. The breakdown is seven Chinese citizens, two Singaporean citizens, and one Malaysian citizen,” explained Nunung.
Inspector General Nunung said his party was charging the suspects and the casino boss under Article 426 paragraph (1) letters a, b, and/or c, as well as Article 427 of Law Number 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code (KUHP).
“For gambling organisers, the maximum criminal penalty is nine years in prison,” said Nunung.
On Saturday (29/8), Bareskrim announced that it had charged the casino owner, Suwanda alias Akau, with gambling and money laundering offences.
“Against the suspect named Suwanda alias Akau, in addition to being charged with criminal offences related to casino gambling, he is also charged with offences related to money laundering,” said Inspector General Nunung in his statement.
Nunung added that the Riau Islands Regional Police were also involved in the investigation process, and the local police assisted in carrying out the raid.
“Because of the 197 people, we certainly cannot quickly conduct examinations by ourselves; there must be assistance from the region,” continued Inspector General Nunung.
From the location, Bareskrim seized Rp 7 billion in cash from three safes, and Rp 500 million in cash from chip exchange activity.
“The team also secured other cash amounting to Rp 297,213,000. Thus, the total cash secured in the raid reached approximately Rp 7.79 billion,” said Inspector General Nunung.
Other evidence seized included 16 shooting machines or bubble machines, 54 skater machines, 22 mahjong machines, one dice machine, and 14 fish shooting machines.
On Tuesday (18/8), Bareskrim investigators brought nine suspects in the case from Batam to the National Police Headquarters. According to detikcom monitoring at the location, the suspects arrived at 3.33 pm Western Indonesia Time with their hands handcuffed.
They immediately entered the Bareskrim Polri building on Jalan Trunojoyo, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.
“That is correct, nine suspects along with evidence in the Batam casino case were brought to Bareskrim for in-depth examination. They consist of seven male suspects and two female suspects,” said Head of the Mobile Investigation Unit of Bareskrim Polri, Senior Commissioner Arsya Khadafi, to reporters.
Investigators were also seen carrying several suitcases and a medium-sized package.