Soekarno-Hatta Airport Police Nab 9 Bangkok-Bound Passengers with 280 Cellphones, 2,260 SIM Cards

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Soekarno-Hatta Airport Police arrested nine individuals, identified by their initials as OS, AA, LS, VA, SY, TA, DA, DJA, and SA, at Terminal 3, Tangerang, Banten, for allegedly attempting to smuggle hundreds of cellphones.

Commissioner Yandri Mono, Head of the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Police, stated that the nine individuals intended to transport the phones to Bangkok, Thailand. He clarified that they are currently considered witnesses in the ongoing investigation.

"We confiscated 280 mobile phones, many of which had multiple mobile banking applications installed. Each phone contained several different mobile banking apps," Yandri explained during a press conference at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police on Friday, May 9, 2025.

In addition to the phones, the police also seized other evidence from the arrested individuals, including 2,260 SIM cards, 24 ATM cards, two bank account books, two security tokens, and 100 US dollar bills in various denominations.

Yandri indicated that investigators suspect these items were intended to be used for criminal activities abroad, targeting Indonesian citizens.

He elaborated that the arrests began when a witness, identified by the initials VA, was found carrying 30 phones in her bag at Terminal 3 of Soekarno-Hatta Airport. Subsequent questioning revealed that VA was part of a group of nine individuals planning to travel to Bangkok.

"Each person we apprehended had phones and the aforementioned evidence. Each person could carry 20 to 30 phones, totaling 280 phones," Yandri stated.

He noted that the nine individuals claimed they were traveling for a vacation while also planning to start a phone delivery service in Thailand. They were carrying hundreds of phones because they were promised Rp300,000 per phone, along with accommodation and free lodging, by a woman identified only by the initial M.

However, investigators are currently exploring the potential involvement of these witnesses in other criminal activities. Yandri emphasized that the sheer quantity of phones and SIM cards they were carrying raises suspicion. Consequently, he suspected this case may be linked to another ongoing investigation handled by the Cyber Crime Directorate at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police.

Prior to this incident, the Cyber Crime Directorate of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police had arrested two suspects, DA and IA, who are suspected of illegally creating bank accounts and mobile banking accounts using other people's personal information without their consent.

Sr. Comr. Fian Yunus, the Deputy Director of the Cyber Crime Directorate at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police, stated that the creation of these bank and mobile banking accounts is suspected to be connected to funds obtained from online fraud operations in Cambodia.

"Related to the use of personal data used for banking to commit various crimes, both domestically and internationally," Fian explained during a press conference at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police on Friday, May 9, 2025.

He mentioned that they are still searching for another suspect, MP, who is believed to be overseas and is suspected of being the mastermind behind the group's criminal activities.

Comr. Megawati of Subdirectorate I of the Cyber Crime Directorate at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police explained that DA initially instructed IA to find individuals willing to provide their personal details to create bank and mobile banking accounts.

After obtaining personal data such as the Population Identification Number (NIK), IA used it to register online and open bank and mobile banking accounts at multiple banks using a single phone. IA repeated this process multiple times and then handed over these phones to DA.

"Furthermore, the phones containing the bank and mobile banking accounts, along with their usernames and passwords, were sent by DA to IA in Cambodia on the instructions of MP," Megawati said.

She added that all operational activities of this group were carried out under MP's direction, who also provided all the necessary operational expenses for DA and IA.

According to Megawati, DA and IA had sent phones containing mobile banking accounts to Cambodia on four separate occasions, totaling 32 units, with a shipping cost of US$200 per unit.

The Cyber Crime Directorate of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police arrested IA and DA in the Cikini area of Central Jakarta on Thursday, April 10, 2025. At the time of DA's arrest, police confiscated eight phones, five bank passbooks, and 18 ATM cards from various banks. From IA, police seized one phone, five ATM cards, and one passport.

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