Police dismantle digital propaganda syndicate, eight named as suspects

The General Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Polda Metro Jaya has dismantled an organised digital propaganda syndicate that spread hoaxes, slander, and provocation on social media. Polda Metro Jaya’s General Criminal Investigation Director, Senior Commissioner Iman Imanuddin, explained that police had successfully arrested and detained eight suspects in the case. “At present, in its entirety, the fund managers, the project givers, the content creators, the content distributors, and the account managers and owners have all been secured or arrested,” Iman said during a press conference in Jakarta on Monday. He explained that the syndicate’s unlawful actions had disrupted social, economic, and political stability, as well as public security and order. “In carrying out their actions, this syndicate was divided into five organised roles, namely recruiters and financiers, content creators, content distributors, content boosters, and mass distributors (blasting),” he said. Based on the investigation by the Sub-Directorate of Violent Crimes, six suspects are currently detained at the Polda Metro Jaya Detention Centre. They are identified by their initials: ADIK, who provided content narratives and conducted briefings; BCK, who sent content narratives; AYV, who managed and held social media accounts; YAP, who acted as a content editor; YNI, who provided comment acceleration services (booster); and MMA, who also served as an editor. “Meanwhile, two other suspects have been named: G, who offered the digital propaganda projects, and S, who acted as a graphic designer,” he said. In addition to arresting the suspects, investigators seized evidence including 11 mobile phones, two laptops, one iPad, two flash drives containing propaganda content, and Rp220 million in cash suspected to be payment for the projects. The suspects are charged under Article 32 in conjunction with Article 48 of Law Number 1 of 2024 on the Second Amendment to Law No. 11/2008 on Electronic Information and Transactions, which carries a maximum prison sentence of eight years and a maximum fine of Rp2 billion. “Beyond the ITE Law, investigators are also exploring the potential application of the Personal Data Protection Law as well as corruption charges if evidence is found that state funds were used to order these digital propaganda projects,” Iman said. Polda Metro Jaya also urged the public to use social media wisely by prioritising ethics and to always verify the truth of information before sharing it, in order to maintain a safe, healthy, and productive digital space.