JAKARTA, RAKYAT NEWS – Indonesia’s Cyber Crime Directorate (Dittipidsiber) of the National Police (Polri) has arrested a Chinese national, identified as QF, who is suspected of operating an illegal online gambling site, Slot8278. Authorities revealed that QF entered Indonesia posing as an investor to establish and run his illicit gambling operation.

Brigadier General Himawan Bayu Aji, Director of Cyber Crime at Polri, shared in a press conference that QF used his background in finance to work with local Payment Service Providers (PSPs) to facilitate gambling transactions.

“With his financial expertise, he posed as an investor and coordinated with various PSPs in Indonesia to manage transactions for his online gambling business,” Himawan stated.

According to Himawan, QF set up a limited liability company to aid in his operations and collaborated with local PSPs to channel funds from gambling activities back to China. He also enlisted six Indonesian nationals to help run the enterprise.

These individuals, identified as RA, IMM, AF, FH, RAP, and HJ, held roles from legal and financial management to operations.

Slot8278 has reportedly been active since September 2022, with an estimated turnover of IDR 685.5 billion and a player base of around 85,000 users.

The gambling site primarily targeted Indonesian players but also operated in other Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

During the raid, police seized 17 mobile phones, 3 laptops, an iPad, 4 bank tokens, and blocked five bank accounts holding a total of IDR 6.05 billion. The suspects face multiple charges, with potential prison sentences of up to 20 years.

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