Rifaldo Aquino Pontoh Arrested in Bali on Interpol Red Notice for Trafficking

Indonesian police detained Rifaldo Aquino Pontoh (also reported as Rifaldo Aquiono Pontoh) at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, after intercepting him as he arrived from a travel route traced through Cambodia and the Philippines. A photo released by the national police shows officers in plain clothes escorting the suspect through Ngurah Rai; authorities say he was wanted under an Interpol Red Notice for alleged involvement in human trafficking linked to online fraud networks operating in Cambodia.

Senior Commissioner Ricky Purnama of NCB Interpol Indonesia said the arrest followed an intelligence tip from NCB Manila that flagged Pontoh’s movement from Cambodia to the Philippines and onward to Bali. “NCB Interpol Indonesia received information from NCB Manila regarding Rifaldo, who was traveling from Cambodia to the Philippines and would then continue his journey to Bali,” Purnama said, describing the cross‑border alert that precipitated coordination with airport immigration and local police.

Police allege Pontoh helped recruit Indonesian nationals to so‑called scam compounds in Cambodia by posting fraudulent high‑paying job offers on social media and other platforms. Ricky Purnama, identified by police as head of Indonesia’s transnational crime division and a senior commissioner at NCB Interpol Indonesia, outlined the methods attributed to the network: “Their passports were confiscated, wages were withheld, and those who tried to resign or return to Indonesia were required to pay extremely high fees,” he said, summarizing victim reports of passport seizure, unpaid wages, severe physical abuse, and forced‑labor conditions inside the compounds.

The arrest was executed as a joint operation involving four units identified by investigators: the NCB Interpol Indonesia secretariat, the Jakarta Metropolitan Police criminal investigation unit, the Ngurah Rai airport police precinct, and airport immigration. Indonesian authorities say the detention comes amid a broader effort to repatriate and screen citizens following a Cambodian crackdown on scam operations; Jakarta is coordinating with its embassy in Phnom Penh to screen more than 3,500 returnees to determine who were trafficking victims and who may have participated in criminal activity.

Background material compiled by authorities and observers estimates the scale of exploitation tied to regional scam compounds is large; a State report cited in investigative material estimated at least 80,000 Indonesian nationals were illegally in Cambodia, many likely exploited in online scam operations. Authorities have not released a formal charging document or provided the full Interpol Red Notice text, and police statements did not specify where Pontoh is being held or the next legal steps.

Indonesian officials say the arrest reflects intensified regional cooperation with Interpol and Philippine counterparts to dismantle networks that recruit Indonesians via fraudulent job advertising and operate transnational scam compounds in Southeast Asia.