Indonesia Pig Butchering Syndicate — Live Model Operation (2025-2026)
Summary
An international online fraud syndicate operating out of Sukoharjo and Surakarta in Central Java, Indonesia from approximately July 2025 to May 2026, allegedly defrauding at least 133 U.S. victims of approximately US$2.33 million through romance manipulation and fake cryptocurrency investment platforms, a scheme known as 'pig butchering.' Indonesian police arrested 39 suspects in May 2026 and have engaged the FBI given the predominance of American victims. Charges are pending; no convictions have been entered as of the date of this investigation.
Connected Entities
1 entities · 10 linked investigationsTimeline(10 events)
2023-11-01
A separate earlier Indonesian pig butchering investigation begins — Indonesia's Bareskrim, supported by Binance and Tokocrypto, initiates a case that would result in seizure of approximately US$200,000 in illicit proceeds.
Cryptopolitan2024-09-24
Cryptopolitan reports on the Bareskrim-Binance-Tokocrypto cooperation, documenting the earlier $200K seizure and arrests in that separate Indonesian pig butchering case.
Cryptopolitan2025-02-27
Myanmar transfers 84 Indonesian nationals to Thailand who were freed from scam compounds; Indonesian embassy takes custody for repatriation, part of a broader wave of Indonesian trafficking victims freed from Myanmar-based pig butchering operations.
IOM Indonesia / Indonesia.IOM.int2025-03-18
Indonesia repatriates 569 citizens freed from online scam centres in Myawaddy, Myanmar, where they had been held as forced labour in pig butchering operations.
International Justice Mission2025-07-01
PT Digi Global Konsultan pig butchering syndicate in Sukoharjo, Central Java, commences operations, according to Central Java Police investigators.
ANTARA News2025-08-01
Chainalysis, Binance, OKX, and Tether cooperate with APAC law enforcement to freeze approximately US$46.9 million in USDT linked to pig butchering operations across Asia-Pacific.
Chainalysis2026-05-20
Central Java Regional Police arrest 39 suspects across 7 crime scenes in Sukoharjo and Surakarta, dismantling the PT Digi Global Konsultan pig butchering operation. Suspects include 28 Indonesians, 7 Nepalese nationals, and 4 Myanmar nationals.
The Star / ANTARA News2026-06-01
Central Java Police hold press conference in Semarang; Senior Commissioner Himawan Sutanto Saragih announces results of the investigation and confirms FBI assistance has been requested given all victims are U.S. citizens.
Tempo.co / ANTARA News2026-06-02
Tempo.co publishes English-language report on the bust; subsequent coverage follows in The Jakarta Post, The Star, The Online Citizen, and The Cooldown.
Tempo.co2026-06-03
The Online Citizen reports FBI has formally joined the Indonesian investigation.
The Online CitizenDecision Log
- #1publish⛓ pending8/15/2026, 12:09:49 PMhash: BWcaC9JKcCV1dhAJecijkT5P1BNKKMekBAsM5vTbPoYR
15 of 16 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-sonnet-4-6
generated: 8/15/2026, 12:09:40 PM
last updated: 8/15/2026, 5:55:24 PM
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