inp.polri.go.id - Mataram. A fake police officer with the initials BD alias Bayu (29) was revealed to have defrauded several businesspeople by asking for donations for the people affected by a fire in Sade Traditional Village, Central Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB).
The Director of General Criminal Investigation at the NTB Regional Police, Senior Superintendent Arisandi, revealed that the disclosure of this fraudulent crime began with a follow-up report from several victims.
"After receiving the report, a team from the Rapid Reaction Unit (URC) of the NTB Regional Police Criminal Investigation Directorate immediately conducted an investigation and successfully arrested the suspect in the Karang Taliwang area, Mataram City," he said on Monday (8/31/2026).
In addition to arresting the man, who is known to be from North Lombok Regency, police also secured evidence in the form of a cell phone allegedly used by the perpetrator to contact and defraud the victims.
The suspect is currently being detained at the NTB Regional Police Headquarters and is being questioned further as a suspect for allegedly violating Article 492 of Law Number 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code.
"So, during the interrogation, the person in question admitted to all of his actions, including defrauding the victim by impersonating as a police official," he added.
The perpetrator, in his confession to investigators, stated that his motive for committing the fraud was for personal financial gain.
"Their modus operandi wasn't limited to contacting the victims by phone, but also to opening donation drives for residents affected by the fire in Sade Village," he said.
The victims targeted in this operation included hotel entrepreneurs, wholesalers, travel agents, and members of the public.
"In their actions, the perpetrators posed as various police officials, from directors, police chiefs, and even unit heads," he explained.
Bayu reportedly received millions of rupiah in profits from the operation. He also received parcels of fruit and ten cartons of bottled water.
"So, the victims' losses varied, from hundreds of thousands to millions of rupiah. The perpetrators carried out their actions over the past year. We are still calculating the total amount they earned," he said.
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