Jakarta, Indonesia Sentinel — Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK) is moving to coordinate the blocking of more than 4,000 bank accounts linked to two online gambling bosses arrested by the National Police earlier this month.
Friderica Widyasari Dewi, OJK’s Chief Executive of Financial Services Business Conduct Supervision, Financial Literacy, and Consumer Protection, said the agency is working with the National Police and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) under the Illegal Financial Activities Eradication Task Force (Satgas PASTI).
“OJK, through Satgas PASTI, will coordinate further with the National Police and PPATK regarding the plan to block these accounts, which number over 4,000,” Friderica said Sunday (May 25), as reported by Antara.
She affirmed OJK’s full support for the legal action taken against the two gambling bosses, who reportedly operated as many as 12 online gambling platforms.
“OJK supports the police’s arrest of the two gambling bosses, as they were clearly involved in activities that harm the public,” she added.
Online Gambling Crackdown
Earlier on May 7, the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) announced the arrests of two suspects in a major online gambling and money laundering case. The suspects, identified as OHW the commissioner of PT A2Z ST and H as its director allegedly ran a shell company providing tech infrastructure for online gambling operations.
Read Also:
Over 80,000 Illegal Indonesian Migrant Workers in Cambodia, Employed in Online Gambling and Scamming
Police Commissioner General Wahyu Widada, head of Bareskrim, said the suspects used a subsidiary, to facilitate digital payment transactions across 12 gambling websites via payment gateways and digital tech tools.
Authorities have so far seized Rp530.05 billion ($33 million) in assets from 4,656 accounts held at 22 banks, with an estimated Rp250.55 billion in direct financial assets. Additionally, 197 accounts in eight banks have been frozen.
Police also confiscated Rp276.5 billion in bonds and four vehicles, including a Mercedes-Benz and three BYD cars.
(Raidi/Agung)
