Woman in Surabaya Goes Viral for Demolishing Official Residence with Excavator

A woman in Surabaya, Murnita Triwidyaning alias Nita, is being tried at the Surabaya District Court after she brazenly demolished an official residence belonging to an official of the East Java I Regional Office of the Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DJBC) using an excavator. Nita argued that she had purchased the official residence located at Jalan Asemrowo Kali Number 23, Surabaya, even though the building is a state asset. Public Prosecutor Hajita Nurcahyo revealed that the reckless act occurred on the night of 27 August 2025. Before demolishing the house, the defendant first rented an excavator and directly showed the operator the building that was the target. Based on the indictment, the act began when the defendant Nita contacted a witness named Novi Yanti to ask about heavy equipment rental places. Novi then sent an excavator rental link via WhatsApp. From that link, the defendant Nita ordered an excavator with the intention of demolishing the building on Jalan Asemrowo Kali Number 23. Then, on Sunday, 27 August 2025, at around 8 p.m. local time, the defendant, who had been waiting in front of the official residence, was approached by the excavator operator who asked the location of the house to be demolished. The defendant then pointed out the building in question. To allow the heavy equipment to enter the official residence area, the defendant Nita also first damaged the fence padlock using a hammer. After the fence was opened, the defendant ordered the excavator operator to demolish the fence first, then push the walls of the official residence with the excavator’s claw until the building collapsed and was destroyed. Only the garage section remained from the demolition process. After the work was completed, the defendant gave a rental fee of Rp7 million to the heavy equipment operator. The indictment also stated that while the official residence was being demolished, the defendant asked witness Yenny Dwijayanti to come and see the condition of the building, which by then had been razed to the ground. At the same time, the head of the local neighbourhood association, Nanang Sudibyo, who witnessed the demolition, immediately reprimanded the defendant for not having a permit and for disturbing local residents. Responding to the reprimand, the defendant insisted that she had bought the official residence. Nanang then contacted a Tanjung Perak Customs and Excise employee, Muhammad Sufyan Nur Wijaya Junaidi, who subsequently reported the incident to the general affairs section of the East Java I DJBC Regional Office, Achmad Safar Hidayat. The Head of the Household Subdivision of the East Java I DJBC Regional Office, Sapta Pinardi, then reported Nita’s actions to the police. According to the indictment, the defendant knew that the building had been fitted with a state housing identity plaque belonging to the Ministry of Finance. The official residence is recorded as a state asset under the East Java I DJBC Regional Office according to an Asset Identity Card in the State Property Management Information System. As a result of this act, the state is estimated to have suffered a loss of approximately Rp537.3 million. For her actions, Murnita is charged under Article 410 of the Criminal Code concerning the destruction of another person’s building, in conjunction with Article 20 letter b of Law Number 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code. As an alternative charge, the prosecutor also charged the defendant under Article 406 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code concerning the destruction of another person’s property, in conjunction with Article 20 letter b of Law No. 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code.