Jakarta. Dozens of Indonesian citizens have recently been implicated in online gambling and cyber scamming cases in the Philippines. Of the 69 Indonesians arrested, two remain in detention as suspects.

The Head of the National Police's International Relations Division, Krishna Murti, said that the rest were repatriated to Indonesia for violating immigration laws by working illegally in the Philippines.

"Of the 69 Indonesians, two are suspects in the Philippines. The others are being deported for violating immigration laws by working illegally," Krishna Murti said at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang on Wednesday.

The repatriation followed a raid conducted by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), with support from Indonesia's National Police (Polri) and the Indonesian Embassy in Manila. The operation was launched after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced a total shutdown of the Philippines Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO), which affected many Indonesians working in both legal and illegal gambling industries.

Polri also coordinated with Philippine authorities to ensure the safety and legal processing of the Indonesians involved.

"Our team, through the police attaché in Manila, actively participated in identifying and assisting citizens at the raid location. We coordinated with the Philippine National Police (PNP), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), and PAOCC to ensure their safety and smooth legal proceedings," Krishna added.

The deportation process is ongoing, with 35 Indonesians repatriated so far, while 32 others await their return. Many of those involved claim to be victims of human trafficking.

"In reality, most of them were operators in online scams and gambling. They often claim to be human trafficking victims, despite willingly entering the sector," Krishna said.

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