Prabowo Orders Police to Investigate Attack on Andrie Yunus
Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi stated that President Prabowo Subianto has instructed the police force to investigate objectively, openly and expeditiously the case of an acid attack against Andrie Yunus, Deputy Coordinator of Kontras.
“To be investigated objectively, transparently and as quickly as possible,” he said at the Ministry of Defence Office in Central Jakarta on Tuesday, 17 March 2026.
Prasetyo noted that the Presidential Palace was concerned about the incident. Prabowo’s commitment to the case has already been conveyed to National Police Chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo.
Listyo Sigit Prabowo previously received instructions from President Prabowo Subianto to investigate the attack on Andrie Yunus. Sigit assured that the police would continue working and would routinely inform developments in the field regarding this case. “Because this is indeed receiving serious attention from the President,” Sigit said on Sunday, 15 March 2026, according to a statement from the Indonesian Government Communications Agency.
Sigit stated that he had received a direct order from Prabowo to investigate the acid attack on Andrie in a professional and transparent manner. According to Sigit, police would trace the attack case through scientific crime investigation, an investigation approach based on scientific methodology.
Scientific crime investigation is a criminal investigation that integrates scientific knowledge and forensic technology to uncover objective truth. This method prioritises physical evidence and expert analysis (forensic laboratory, DNA, digital and medical analysis) over witness statements or suspect testimony alone.
Sigit stated that currently the National Police were gathering information about the incident. “And we will examine that information one by one,” he said.
Kontras Deputy Coordinator Andrie Yunus was doused with acid while on Jalan Salemba I-Talang in Central Jakarta on Thursday evening, 12 March 2026. Andrie was splashed with a caustic solution by two unidentified individuals riding a motorcycle.
The perpetrators of the acid attack approached from the opposite direction to Andrie. Kontras Coordinator Dimas Bagus Arya stated that the perpetrators splashed acid on the front of Andrie’s body.
The corrosive chemical solution struck the right side of Andrie’s body including his eyes, face, chest and hands. Part of the victim’s clothing also melted from contact with the acid.
According to medical records, Andrie sustained burns covering 24 per cent of his body. Andrie Yunus also underwent eye surgery following the acid exposure.