Jakarta. Police in the capital have arrested four additional suspects believed to be the masterminds behind the kidnapping and murder of Mohamad Ilham Pradipta, a 37-year-old branch head of a state-owned bank whose body was found in Bekasi last week.

The latest arrests bring the total number of suspects in the case to eight, Jakarta Metropolitan Police confirmed on Sunday.

Adjunct Senior Commissioner Abdul Rahim, head of the violent crimes investigation unit, said the four men -- identified only by the initials C, DH, YJ, and AA -- are suspected of planning or ordering the abduction and murder.

One suspect, C, was detained in North Jakarta on Sunday afternoon, while the other three were captured a day earlier in Solo, Central Java. “They are currently under intensive questioning,” Abdul Rahim told reporters, adding that the suspects have no direct ties to the victim’s bank.

Earlier on Friday, police announced the arrest of four suspects -- AT, RS, RAH, and RW -- in Jakarta and East Nusa Tenggara. According to investigators, those suspects carried out the abduction but were not directly involved in the killing.

Chilling Abduction Footage
Closed-circuit footage showed Ilham’s abduction in the parking lot of Lotte Mart, Pasar Rebo, East Jakarta, on the evening of August 20. Dressed in a batik shirt, he was walking toward his car in light rain when several men stepped out of a white vehicle, blocked him, and forced him into their car.

The next morning, at about 5:30 a.m., a cattle herder discovered Ilham’s body in Nagasari village, Bekasi. His eyes, hands, and feet were bound tightly with duct tape.

Police said investigations are ongoing to establish the full chain of command behind the murder and identify possible additional suspects.

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