Riau Police’s Director of General Crimes Commissioner Hasyim Risahondua said the group was scheduled to depart from a small port in Medang Kampai Subdistrict using a boat without official documents.
“Two suspects were arrested at Selinsing Beach in Dumai City,” Hasyim told reporters on Thursday.
The migrants—mostly workers from West Sumatra, Aceh, Jambi’s Kerinci, North Sumatra, and Lombok—were rescued after police received a tip-off from local residents about the planned illegal departure on April 18.
A follow-up raid at a house in Dumai Barat uncovered five more individuals.
The suspects, identified as MF, who housed the migrants before departure, and RGS, who acted as a driver transporting them to the coast, were captured on April 20 after briefly fleeing.
“When arrested, both admitted their involvement,” Hasyim said.
Dumai Police Chief Angga FH noted the motive was financial gain. The perpetrators sought quick profits to meet daily needs, he explained.
Authorities have handed over the 61 Indonesian migrants to the national agency for migrant worker placement in Pekanbaru, while the seven foreign nationals were transferred to immigration officials in Dumai.
Both suspects face charges under Indonesia’s Law No. 18/2017 on the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers, which carries penalties for recruiting or dispatching workers abroad without authorization.
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Translator: Bayu Agustari Adha, Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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