Tribratanews.polri.go.id - Jakarta. Criminal Investigation Agency of Indonesian National Police coordinates with Immigration to chase two foreigners suspected of the illegal online loan scheme in Indonesia. However, National Police do not provide further details on the existence of both foreigners, including their identity.
"Still on progress. We have two on the wanted list. We are also coordinating with Immigration because this case involves foreigners. We are still tracing their existence", Chief of Public Information Bureau of PR and Press Division of National Police, Police Brigadier General Rusdi Hartono, on Friday (30/7/2021).
Besides, the Chief of Public Information Bureau also ensures that Police would keep coordinating with many parties to eradicate the increasing illegal online loan scheme in Indonesia because number blocking is proved a less effective solution. After all, the perpetrator could issue new names to search for their victims.
"Because if one (illegal) online loan platform were closed, the perpetrator would make the new one with the new name due to the convenience on creating such applications", Chief of Public Information Bureau concluded.
Previously, the Criminal Investigation Agency of the Indonesian National Police arrested eight suspects on an illegal online loan platform disguised as a Savings and Loans Cooperative (KSP) in Medan, North Sumatra. This platform is also controlled by two foreigners that are still on the run.
Director of Special Economic Criminal Act of Criminal Investigation Agency of Indonesian National Police, Police Brigadier General Helmy Santika, said that this illegal online loan platform's operational modus uses SMS blasting to offer loans to their victims.
He said that this SMS blasting becomes the first step of the investigators to expose this case. From those SMS, perpetrators are detected to be in Medan, North Sumatra.
"Our team then went to Medan, conducted profiling, investigating, and arresting there. From the development in Medan, those perpetrators, besides from SCA Ltd., they also affiliated with other KSP", the one-star general said during a virtual press conference in Criminal Investigation Agency of Indonesian National Police Headquarter, Jakarta, on Thursday (29/7/2021).
He said that the network usually uses KSP names such as "hidup hijau, cinta damai, pulau bahagia, dana darurat, dana cepat cair, pinjaman kejutan super", and other names.
They are all affiliated with this network. In this case, Police has arrested eight suspects who have different roles, with two of them as debt collectors.
"So, in total, we have arrested eight suspects with the evidence such as thousands of SIM cards, modem pool to send SMS blasting, and several handphones and laptops for observing perpetrators' communication transaction flow", he said.
Besides, Police is still hunting two foreigners involved in this online loan case.
"Several foreign suspects are being chased. We have put them into the wanted list and blocked them from leaving the country", he concluded.
Due to their actions, the suspects are subjected to Article 45 paragraph 3 of Electronic Information and Transaction Law, Article 8 and 62 of Law No. 8 of 1999 about Consumer's Protection and Job Creation Law, and Article 311 of Indonesian Criminal Code. They are threatened to a maximum of five years in prison.
