Soetta Immigration Uncovers Love Scam Involving Three Chinese Nationals

The Class I Special Immigration Office for TPI Soekarno-Hatta in Tangerang, Banten, has uncovered an alleged love scam, or transnational marriage-by-order scheme, involving three foreign nationals from China. Head of the Soekarno-Hatta Immigration Office, Galih P. Kartika Perdhana, stated on Saturday that the three Chinese nationals, identified by the initials CS, FG, and CX, were part of the love scam syndicate. “This enforcement action is a tangible demonstration of Immigration’s commitment to the people in safeguarding state sovereignty while protecting Indonesian citizens,” he said. Galih explained that the case began with the suspicions of immigration officers after receiving a new passport application from an Indonesian citizen with the initials FNR on 4 June 2026. During the interview process, FNR claimed she would be travelling to Malaysia, but further investigation revealed she was actually being sent to China to be married to a local man through an intermediary, an Indonesian citizen with the initials AN. “The findings were then developed by the Immigration Intelligence and Enforcement Team, which successfully identified CS, also known as ‘Paman’, as the network coordinator,” he stated. Following this lead, officers secured CS at Terminal 3 International Departures of Soekarno-Hatta Airport on 12 June 2026, just before he was about to leave Indonesian territory. “The surveillance operation continued on 17 June 2026 with a monitoring operation at an apartment in the Tangerang area,” he said. At the location, officers detained two other Chinese nationals, FG and CX, along with three Indonesian women, identified as SA, PY, and PO, who are suspected victims. Examination results indicated that SA and PO had previously attempted to be dispatched to China but failed due to visa discrepancies. “The investigation revealed that the victims were promised a better economic life through marriage to Chinese men,” he said. He noted that the prospective husbands involved in the network paid around 60,000 RMB, or approximately Rp150 million, to the perpetrator CS. Meanwhile, around 20,000 RMB, or roughly Rp50 million, was given to the victims’ families as a dowry, with the remainder used to arrange travel documents, Chinese visas, certificates of unmarried status, accommodation, and departure costs. Following the investigation, Soetta Immigration deported the three Chinese nationals involved in the syndicate on Friday, 26 June 2026, via a flight from Jakarta to Guangzhou. In addition to the administrative immigration action of deportation, CS, FG, and CX have been proposed for inclusion on the blacklist in accordance with statutory regulations. The Soekarno-Hatta Immigration Office will continue to investigate the possibility of other parties being involved and fully uncover the transnational marriage-by-order network.