Man Arrested as Suspect in Attack on Female Student in Riau

Police have designated a man with initials R, aged 21, as a suspect following his attack with a sharp weapon on a student from Sultan Syarief Kasim State Islamic University (UIN Suska), identified as F, aged 23. R is now formally detained at Pekanbaru Regional Police Headquarters.

The head of Pekanbaru Regional Police Headquarters, Kombes Muharman Arta, stated that the investigation into this case has been escalated to Pekanbaru Regional Police Headquarters given the significant public attention the incident has attracted.

“The suspect has already been transferred and is now detained at Pekanbaru Regional Police Headquarters detention facility,” said Kombes Muharman in Pekanbaru on Friday, 27 February 2026.

Muharman revealed that the motivation behind the stabbing was related to romantic disputes.

“The motive at this stage remains a romantic dispute, based on the suspect’s statement,” he added.

The regional police chief stated that the suspect had planned the assault in advance. The suspect had prepared a sharp weapon specifically to attack the victim.

“The premeditation is evidenced by the sharp weapon which he brought from home, so this constitutes the element of premeditation,” he said.

Investigators from the Crime Investigation Unit of Pekanbaru Regional Police Headquarters are currently expediting the documentation of the case against the suspect. Meanwhile, police interviews with the victim are awaiting the victim’s recovery to full health.

The stabbing incident occurred on the second floor of the Faculty of Sharia and Islamic Law at UIN Suska on Thursday, 26 February in the morning. At that time, whilst the victim was awaiting the commencement of her thesis examination, she was suddenly attacked by the perpetrator, who is also a student at the campus.