Bali Police probe Russian national's kidnapping, crypto theft

Denpasar, Bali (ANTARA) - The Bali Regional Police reported the kidnapping of a Russian citizen with the initials AI in the South Kuta area of Badung District, which is now under investigation.

The Bali Police Head of Public Relations, Senior Commissioner Ariasandy, on Thursday (July 9) said the victim was allegedly held captive and abused for nearly 30 hours before being released, while police are now hunting for the perpetrators.

According to him, the incident occurred on July 2 when the victim was returning from the Hedonist Restaurant to a villa in Pecatu Village.

AI was confronted by a black Nissan Serena when two masked perpetrators appeared and handcuffed the victim's hands and forced the victim into the car.

AI was then taken to a building where they were suspected of being held captive.

"According to the victim's statement, for nearly 30 hours the victim was intimidated, beaten, and kicked by the perpetrators," Ariasandy explained.

The violence was allegedly carried out to force the victim to hand over the password for a crypto asset account.

Furthermore, the victim's Xiaomi cellphone was also stolen.

The perpetrators then used the victim's villa key, which was located on the motorcycle's dashboard, to enter Villa Ukulele.

They took another cellphone, which the victim allegedly used to access the crypto asset account.

The perpetrators released the victim early on Saturday (July 4) in front of Udayana University Hospital in Jimbaran.

The victim then immediately went to the emergency room for medical treatment.

After initially receiving a missing person report, the Bali Regional Police upgraded the case to a criminal investigation into alleged kidnapping, assault, and violent theft.

During the investigation, police have questioned several witnesses and conducted crime scene investigations at four locations: the Hedonist Restaurant, the kidnapping location in Pecatu, Villa Ukulele, and the location where the victim was dropped off in front of Udayana University Hospital.

Investigators are also collecting CCTV footage and analyzing cell phone data dumps from all locations related to the case to track down the perpetrators.

According to Ariasandy, investigators are still verifying the identities of the suspects and their nationality. Police are also assessing the victim's losses stemming from the theft of cryptocurrency assets.

The Bali Regional Police reiterated that every report, including cases involving foreign nationals, is processed thoroughly under prevailing legal procedures.

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Translator: Rolandus Nampu, Resinta Sulistiyandari

Editor: Azis Kurmala

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