The West Jakarta Police says it has arrested an influencer known for his humorous content, who allegedly defrauded a complainant to the tune of IDR1.3 billion (US$84,646).
Ajudan Pribadi, whose real name is Muhammad Akbar and whose online moniker translates to “personal aide,” shot to social media fame as an actual personal aide to VIPs in 2019 when he would flex about being part of his bosses’ jet-setting lifestyles — albeit often in comically self-deprecating ways.
Ajudan Pribadi then became his own man as one of the most renowned social media influencers in Indonesia, regularly producing content about his life.
His content output dried up over the past year amid a fraud complaint filed against him in November 2022. Yesterday, police announced that the influencer has been arrested in connection with the case.
“There was a [fraud] report in November 2022, in which somebody recorded IDR1.3 billion in losses,” West Jakarta Police Crime Investigation Unit Chief Commissioner Andri Kurniawan said.
The complainant in the case claims that they paid the money to Ajudan Pribadi in exchange for a Toyota Land Cruiser, which the buyer never received. Ajudan Pribadi allegedly ignored the complainant’s numerous warnings to hand over the car.
Ajudan Pribadi’s Instagram account, which has 1 million followers as of this article’s publication, has been set to private.
Indonesia has had its fair share of problematic influencers. In 2021, a lesser-known influencer from Medan was arrested for running away with IDR20 billion (US$1.3 million) from a rotating community savings scheme, locally known as arisan, which she used to fund her luxurious Bali lifestyle.
Also that year, beauty influencer Rachel Vennya shortened her mandatory COVID-19 quarantine after coming home from abroad by bribing an official IDR40 million (US$2,602). She was eventually given an eight-month suspended sentence and fined IDR50 million (US$3,253).
