The Head of the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Police, Commissioner Yandri Mono, on Friday said one suspect was arrested, identified as NS, and another suspect is on the wanted list, identified as Y.
"We have arrested suspect NS, while Y has been listed as a wanted person," he noted.
Mono explained the case began with the thwarted attempt to send six undocumented migrant workers through Terminal 2 International Departures at Soekarno-Hatta Airport.
They were scheduled to depart on Scoot flight TR 269 from Jakarta to Singapore on October 1, 2025, then continue on Scoot flight TR 350 from Singapore to Vientiane, Laos.
Further investigation found the six prospective illegal migrant workers had been promised jobs as scam admins in Laos. They were recruited through a WhatsApp group called "LAOS LAST," created by the perpetrators.
Based on the victims' statements, the police attempted to arrest suspect NS in Palembang, where he told the police that he worked with Y to find prospective workers by promising them jobs as crypto marketers in Laos.
"NS was responsible for collecting documents such as ID cards, family cards, birth certificates, and diplomas for passport applications," Mono outlined.
Meanwhile, Y was responsible for arranging all matters related to the departure of six prospective Indonesian migrant workers to Laos, financing their travel for interviews, and providing them with jobs in the country.
Mono stated that the perpetrators are charged under Article 81 in conjunction with Article 69 and Article 83 in conjunction with Article 68 of Law No. 18 of 2017 concerning the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers.
"They face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison," he said.
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Translator: Azmi Syamsul, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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