Retired Civil Servant from DIY Duped of Rp279 Million in Brompton Bicycle Scam, Suspect Used Deceased Person's Data

A retired civil servant (PNS) from Triharjo, Sleman, Eko Suhargono (62), fell victim to an online fraud scheme involving the buying and selling of Brompton folding bicycles. Eko’s pension funds were depleted, resulting in losses totalling Rp279.2 million.

“Yes, we received the report on Tuesday afternoon and it is currently under investigation,” said AKP Salamun, Head of Public Relations at Sleman Police Resort (Polresta Sleman), as reported by detikJogja on Thursday (26/2/2026).

The incident began when Eko was contacted by someone claiming to be an old colleague through WhatsApp. Initially, Eko had no suspicion because the identity used by the perpetrator appeared convincing.

The perpetrator then offered a business scheme to buy and sell Brompton brand folding bicycles. However, as time went on, he asked Eko to send money for various technical reasons.

“At first, I was only asked to help negotiate the sale of a bicycle, but gradually I was asked to transfer money for various reasons,” Eko explained separately.

Gradually, Eko transferred money totalling Rp279.2 million to several different bank accounts. Eko only realised he had fallen victim to fraud after tracing the perpetrator’s true identity.

“After I sent the money, communication became difficult. I tried to confirm with several parties and it turned out that the name being used belonged to someone who had died long ago. That’s when I realised this was a scam,” he explained.