Online Taxi Driver Hired by Defendant in Bank Manager Kidnap-Murder Case Acquitted

Online taxi driver Eka Wahyu Hidayatullah has been acquitted in the case of the kidnapping and murder of bank branch manager M Ilham Pradipta. The judge stated that Eka was not proven guilty in the case. “Declares the defendant Eka Wahyu Hidayatullah, mentioned above, not legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing the criminal acts as charged in all of the public prosecutor’s indictments,” said presiding judge Juandra while reading the verdict at the East Jakarta District Court on Monday (20/7/2026). The judge noted that Eka was merely an online taxi driver hired by an individual named Boma. He stated that Eka was unaware of the plan to kidnap the victim. “The defendant Eka Wahyu Hidayatullah was not the party who had the idea to kidnap the victim Mohamad Ilham Pradipta and did not know about the kidnapping of the victim Mohamad Ilham Pradipta. The defendant was merely an online transport driver chartered by Boma on 20 August 2025,” the judge said. The judge stated that Eka had already left the crime scene when the kidnapping occurred. It was noted that at around 3 PM Western Indonesian Time, the defendant had left the Lotte Mart car park, whereas the victim was kidnapped by the perpetrators, specifically witness Erasmus Wawo, at around 5:18 PM. The defendant was no longer at the location of the kidnapping and had no involvement in the act because he did not know the perpetrators or the witnesses involved. Eka had previously faced a sentencing hearing where prosecutors demanded a four-year prison term. Prosecutors also demanded he pay restitution amounting to Rp 40.6 million. A total of 18 defendants are being tried in the murder case of Ilham Pradipta, consisting of military personnel and more than a dozen civilians. Three military defendants have been sentenced as follows: Serka Mochamad Nasir received 13 years in prison, Kopda Feri Herianto received 7 years, and Serka Frengky Yaru received 1 year. The civilian defendants are being tried at the East Jakarta District Court and are charged with the premeditated murder of Ilham. The murder was linked to an attempt to steal money from dormant accounts, with the intended sum reaching Rp 455 billion. Prosecutors stated that the defendants needed Ilham to facilitate the transfer of funds, leading to his kidnapping and fatal assault. Trials and verdicts for the other defendants are ongoing.