Indonesian Lawmakers Push Police to Uncover Masterminds of International Online Gambling Ring

Members of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) are pressing the National Police's Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) to thoroughly investigate an international online gambling network. The lawmakers want the investigation to extend beyond the field operatives to expose the intellectual masterminds, financiers, and controllers of the operation.

"We urge that the investigation continue to be developed so that all parties involved, including the main controllers and beneficiaries, as well as those who assisted in the operations or money laundering from gambling, can be held legally accountable," stated Adang Daradjatun, a member of Commission III of the DPR. He emphasized that law enforcement should not stop at the lower-level perpetrators.

This call follows Bareskrim's recent success in arresting 287 foreign nationals suspected of involvement in the online gambling activities based in Jakarta's Hayam Wuruk Plaza Tower. The suspects include individuals from China, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Lawmakers praised the police's professional, measured, and courageous work in dismantling this transnational criminal network, recognizing it as a significant achievement in combating cybercrime.

Daradjatun stressed that this bust should serve as a catalyst to intensify the fight against online gambling, which has evolved into organized crime supported by technology and cross-border networks. He highlighted the critical need for synergy between the police, the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), the Directorate General of Immigration, relevant ministries, and international partners. Such collaboration is deemed essential for comprehensively disrupting gambling networks and tracing criminal assets to deter future offenses. The legislator also pointed out the severe social impacts of online gambling, including poverty, household debt, and family breakdown, underscoring that the state must not be defeated by cybercrime.