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The arrest of 320 foreign nationals at an online gambling (judol) office in Hayam Wuruk, Jakarta, suggests Indonesia has become a ‘comfortable haven’ for transnational criminals, according to cybersecurity experts. Who are the key players orchestrating these foreign worker operations, managing the flow of funds, and financing these online gambling ventures?
On Saturday, May 9th, police apprehended 321 individuals suspected of involvement in illegal online gambling activities within the Hayam Wuruk Plaza Tower office complex in West Jakarta.
The operational hub for these gambling activities was located on the top floors of the building, the 20th and 21st, with no company names displayed.
Authorities reported that 320 of those arrested were foreign nationals, while one was an Indonesian citizen who had previously worked in a similar capacity in Cambodia.
“We are still verifying the role of the Indonesian citizen, but for now, they appear to have been working in customer service,” stated Brigadier General Wira Satya Triputra, Director of General Crimes Investigation at the National Police Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim Polri).
The hundreds of foreign nationals detained by the police allegedly held various roles, ranging from marketing and customer service to administration and debt collection.
Investigators claim they are diligently working to uncover the full network of these online gambling operations, including identifying the masterminds behind this international syndicate.
As of Monday, May 11th, police were still investigating the sponsors, office lessees, and the financial streams supporting the syndicate’s operations.
“We will coordinate further investigations into the flow of funds and the sponsors who brought these individuals here,” explained Wira.
Police indicated that the online gambling network had only been operational for approximately two months and managed around 75 website domains. However, the specific website addresses have not yet been disclosed to the public.
What’s Next for the Detained Foreign Nationals?
At least two government agencies have been involved in investigating this case over the past three days.
Beyond the police, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, specifically the Directorate General of Immigration, has pledged to thoroughly investigate the guarantors for the 320 foreign nationals implicated in the Hayam Wuruk online gambling case.
“We will be investigating the sponsors or guarantors of these foreign nationals for their presence in Indonesia,” said Arief Eka Riyanto, Head of the Sub-Directorate for Immigration Supervision at the Directorate General of Immigration.
Previously, the police had transferred the hundreds of foreign nationals to the Directorate General of Immigration at two locations: the Immigration Detention Centers in Kuningan, South Jakarta, and West Jakarta. The single Indonesian citizen arrested was taken to Bareskrim Polri for further questioning.
Upon processing, the 320 foreign nationals comprised 228 from Vietnam, 57 from China, 13 from Myanmar, 11 from Laos, five from Thailand, three from Malaysia, and three from Cambodia.
They had entered Indonesia on tourist visas, valid for 30 days. A significant portion of them had overstayed their visa validity period.
“We are conducting further investigations into the alleged suspects regarding immigration violations and offenses,” stated Arief.
Pratama Persadha, Head of the Communication and Information System Security Research Center (CISSReC), commented that in many transnational cybercrime cases, those apprehended on the ground are often merely technical operators or enforcers.
“They work like regular company employees with shift systems, work targets, and distinct departments for customer service, transaction operators, digital marketing, and account management,” said Pratama.
According to Pratama, many of these individuals are unaware of the true owners of these online gambling operations.
The organizational structure of modern cybercrime syndicates is typically designed to be fragmented, with information compartmentalized based on work requirements. This strategy, he explained, aims to keep the ‘core layer’ secure even if one part of the network is compromised.
In the Hayam Wuruk case, Pratama believes it’s “highly probable that a majority of the 321 individuals arrested only knew a limited chain of command.”
“The intellectual actors, or the ‘invisible hand,’ are usually based abroad, utilizing false identities, encrypted communications, offshore servers, and digital intermediaries,” Pratama noted.
Despite this, Pratama emphasized the importance of mass arrests within these networks. He explained that through electronic devices, communication metadata, financial transactions, login patterns, and other digital footprints, investigators can indeed construct a map of the larger criminal network.
In the realm of cyber intelligence, key actors are often identified not through direct confessions but through the correlation of digital forensics and financial tracing.
Is Indonesia Becoming a ‘Safe Haven’ for Southeast Asian Online Gambling?
The uncovering of the ‘Hayam Wuruk online gambling headquarters’ raises concerns that Indonesia could become a ‘comfortable haven’ for online gambling networks in Southeast Asia, as voiced by Pratama Persadha of CISSReC.
“From a cybersecurity and transnational crime perspective, cases like this are rarely isolated incidents; they almost always involve local ecosystem support,” Pratama stated.
The local ecosystem support he referred to includes operations with hundreds of personnel, large office spaces, high-speed internet connectivity, bank accounts, digital devices, logistics, and a degree of protection for operational activities over a period.
All of these, according to Pratama, necessitate a supporting network within Indonesia.
Based on these observations, Pratama believes the notion of “Indonesia as the new safe haven for online gambling in Southeast Asia” is more than just speculation.
Pratama suggests that these facts should serve as a critical alarm, indicating the formation of a protection ecosystem for digital crime that involves local actors.
In the context of the Hayam Wuruk online gambling headquarters, Pratama suspects the involvement of local financiers.
He explained that in transnational criminal activities, local financiers are not always directly protected by law enforcement. Their involvement can manifest as business providers, facilitators for bank accounts, property lessors, providers of fake identities, operators of shell companies, or logistics and permit facilitators.
As an illustration, Pratama cited cases in Southeast Asia where international networks have been known to use local citizens to open bank accounts, establish formal business entities, rent buildings, and procure numerous mobile phone numbers.
“The focus of investigations must be broadened to encompass the entire supporting ecosystem,” urged Pratama.
Meanwhile, several countries in Southeast Asia have begun cracking down on online gambling operations within their own borders.
Cambodia, for instance, committed to combating cyber fraud and online gambling syndicates in January. At that time, over 1,000 Indonesian citizens voluntarily evacuated from various locations in Cambodia suspected of being hubs for online gambling.
This exodus was triggered by the Cambodian government’s decision to arrest and deport Chen Zhi back to China, his country of origin. Chen Zhi, a former advisor to Cambodia’s leader, was accused of running a massive online fraud operation and was indicted by U.S. authorities in October 2025.
Local media reported that this arrest created a deterrent effect for online gambling operators in Cambodia. Numerous syndicates shut down their operations, with some even releasing their workers to vacate their premises.
In the Hayam Wuruk case, based on the nationalities of the hundreds of foreign nationals arrested, the police have indicated that Indonesia is now a preferred destination for international online gambling syndicates.
“Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos, in particular, serve as recruitment bases and activity centers for online crimes targeting transnational victims, predominantly foreign nationals. Following crackdowns, there’s a shift towards Indonesia,” stated Brigadier General Untung Widyatmoko, Secretary of NCB Interpol Polri.
According to money laundering expert Yenti Garnasih, as Cambodia undergoes a crackdown, Indonesia is being eyed due to certain contributing factors.
Yenti suggests that the raid on the Hayam Wuruk online gambling den points to a “high level of moral corruption” within Indonesia.
“From a money laundering perspective, this indicates the presence of individuals supporting online gambling,” Yenti asserted.
She believes there has been a degree of complacency towards those profiting from these illegal activities. According to Yenti, the beneficiaries of these crimes “control, channel, and enjoy online gambling money, and rarely face legal repercussions in Indonesia.”
How Effective is Law Enforcement in Prosecuting Online Gambling Perpetrators?
According to data from the Indonesian Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), the total transaction volume for online gambling in 2025 reached Rp286.84 trillion across 422.1 million transactions.
PPATK claims this figure represents a 40% decrease compared to 2024. This downward trend is accompanied by a reduction in online gambling deposits, which stood at Rp36.01 trillion in 2025, down from Rp51.3 trillion in the previous year.
PPATK also noted that in 2025, approximately 12.3 million individuals made deposits for online gambling through various channels, including banks, e-wallets, and QRIS.
PPATK observed a significant increase in deposit methods using QRIS, compared to traditional bank transfers or e-wallets.
PPATK attributes the decline in these figures to the effective implementation of strategies and strong collaboration between the government and the private sector in preventing and combating online gambling across various fronts.
As of mid-2025, the Indonesian National Police had resolved 1,297 online gambling cases involving 1,492 suspects. These investigations led to the seizure of assets worth Rp922.53 billion and the blocking of hundreds of thousands of online gambling websites.
Of these cases, 13 involved money laundering offenses.
However, Yenti Garnasih argues that the online gambling cases previously handled by the National Police have been “total failures” due to suboptimal law enforcement.
Yenti strongly urges the police to utilize the Anti-Money Laundering Law (TPPU) to track down and prosecute the principal offenders. She asserts that virtually all online gambling cases in Indonesia can be classified as money laundering.
“Online gambling is the source of money laundering offenses, making the TPPU Law the last hope to eradicate online gambling at its roots,” Yenti declared.
“Therefore, the focus should not solely be on enforcing the law concerning online gambling under the Electronic Information and Transactions Law (ITE),” she advised.
Historically, online gambling cases have often been resolved using the ITE Law, which makes it difficult for the police to apprehend the main perpetrators.
Online gambling violates Article 27 Paragraph 2 of the ITE Law concerning the distribution of gambling content. Offenders, including players, agents, and distributors, face a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and/or a fine of up to Rp10 billion.
In contrast, the TPPU Law can be applied to online gambling cases because the proceeds can be categorized as assets derived from criminal activities, targeting the masterminds, operators, and beneficiaries of the funds.
By applying the TPPU Law, Yenti is confident that the state can maximally confiscate assets and money gained from online gambling crimes, while also imposing a significant deterrent effect through criminal sanctions that can extend up to 20 years imprisonment.
How Difficult Is It to Uncover the Masterminds of Online Gambling?
According to cybersecurity experts, Indonesia technically possesses advanced capabilities for tracing funds in money laundering cases through the ‘follow the money’ approach.
PPATK, the Financial Services Authority (OJK), Bank Indonesia, and the national banking sector have relatively adequate anti-money laundering infrastructure and systems for reporting suspicious transactions.
However, the primary challenge lies not in the tools available but in the complexity of the operational modus operandi.
For Yenti, principal offenders are guaranteed to possess power, influence within the political system, and significant capital.
What Hinders the Unveiling of Key Perpetrators?
Pratama notes that tracing financial flows within online gambling networks is significantly more challenging now than a decade ago.
“Perpetrators employ multi-layered financial laundering techniques. The proceeds from gambling do not enter a primary account but are dispersed across thousands of nominee accounts, digital wallets, virtual accounts, payment gateways, and even cryptocurrencies. This technique aims to sever the link between the criminal proceeds and the actual owners,” Pratama explained.
These criminals also leverage extremely high volumes of micro-transactions to avoid triggering automated detection thresholds in banking systems.
“In many instances, funds are cycled repeatedly through individual accounts of ordinary people who are unaware their accounts are being used as ‘mule accounts.’ There’s also a pattern of using dormant accounts, or passive accounts purchased from individuals,” Pratama added.
Therefore, while technically feasible, Pratama stated that such investigations require immense data integration, big data analysis, forensic accounting, and cross-border coordination.
The difficulty escalates further when funds begin to enter the cryptocurrency realm.
“Once funds are converted into digital assets through specific exchanges, perpetrators can transfer them across borders in minutes using anonymous wallets, mixer services, decentralized finance, and privacy coins,” said Pratama.
At this stage, investigations demand cyber financial intelligence far more sophisticated than conventional banking investigations.
What Facilitates the Discovery of Key Perpetrators?
Pratama asserts that the principal perpetrators can still be identified if investigators adopt a modern cyber intelligence approach.
It is a fundamental fact that the digital world always leaves a trace. Servers maintain logs, domains have registration histories, blockchain transactions have trails, devices possess metadata, and digital communications exhibit connectivity patterns.
Consequently, in these investigations, investigators should not solely rely on suspect confessions but should build an intelligence graph from all discovered digital data.
“From a single phone number, a crypto wallet, an IP address, or an email, investigators can map inter-actor relationships using digital link analysis. Even login patterns, activity times, access locations, and device fingerprints can help identify the main operators,” Pratama explained.
Therefore, Pratama believes that the success in uncovering intellectual actors heavily depends on the integrated capabilities of cyber forensics, financial intelligence, and international cooperation.
If the approach is limited to physical raids and domain blocking, online gambling networks will continue to regenerate.
“However, if law enforcement can disrupt the financial chain, identify the owners of digital infrastructure, and dismantle the local supporting ecosystem, the chances of uncovering the invisible hand behind the online gambling industry will be significantly higher,” concluded Pratama.
Summary
The recent arrest of 320 foreign nationals at an illegal online gambling hub in Hayam Wuruk, Jakarta, has sparked concerns that Indonesia is becoming a safe haven for transnational cybercrime syndicates. Experts emphasize that the detainees, who performed various operational roles, are likely low-level workers rather than the masterminds behind the network. Investigators are currently working to map the syndicate’s financial flows, local facilitators, and the infrastructure that allowed these operations to thrive within the country.
To dismantle these syndicates effectively, legal experts and cybersecurity analysts urge authorities to shift focus from simple criminal charges to robust money laundering prosecutions. By utilizing advanced digital forensics and “follow the money” strategies, investigators can trace the complex, multi-layered financial networks that connect local facilitators to the elusive intellectual actors abroad. Addressing the domestic ecosystem—including property lessors and financial intermediaries—is considered essential to disrupting these operations and preventing Indonesia from further exploitation by international gambling networks.