Police arrest two men suspected of hypnotising schoolchildren in Tambora

Police have arrested two men identified as AS and AP suspected of hypnotising schoolchildren in the Tambora area of West Jakarta to deceive and steal their valuables. Tambora Police Station CID Chief AKP Sudrajat Djumantara said on Monday in Jakarta that the suspects initially targeted schoolchildren on motorcycles, asking them questions to confuse them. ‘The suspects would ask for directions or irrelevant questions to confuse victims, who then followed their instructions,’ he said. Once the psychological trick succeeded, the suspects would leave the victims and take their motorbikes. ‘The latest incident occurred on Bandengan Street in Tambora subdistrict on Sunday (24 May) afternoon. The hypnosis allegation is still under investigation, but the modus operandi shows victims were disoriented and followed the suspects’ instructions, effectively being hypnotised,’ Sudrajat said. The suspects were arrested in the Pekojan area of Tambora shortly after police received the report on Sunday (24 May). The suspects are repeat offenders for the same crime and were recently released from prison in 2022. ‘So far, all victims are minors or still in school uniform,’ Sudrajat said. They have been charged under Article 492 of the new Criminal Code (KUHP), which carries a maximum prison sentence of four years.