32 Suspected Illegal Pilgrims Detained at Soekarno-Hatta Airport

RRI-CO.ID, Tangerang - A joint team from the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Police and Immigration Office in Tangerang, Banten, successfully prevented 32 individuals suspected of attempting to perform the Hajj pilgrimage illegally from leaving the country.

“We thwarted the departure of 32 people at Terminal 2F on Friday, May 15, at around 5:30 p.m.,” said Soekarno-Hatta Airport Police Chief Senior Commissioner Wisnu Wardana in Tangerang on Monday, May 18, 2026, as quoted by Antara.

Immigration officers detected the case after identifying 32 passengers on flight ID 7157 from Jakarta to Singapore. “The Airport Police followed up on the findings of Immigration officers,” Wisnu said.

Police questioned several of the prospective pilgrims, some of whom claimed they were traveling to Hainan, China. However, officers grew suspicious after discovering that many were using Saudi Arabian work visas.

Further investigation revealed that 26 individuals admitted to joining a six-day tour package to Hainan organized by Travel F, costing IDR 15 million per person. “The payment was transferred to the travel agency’s account, and the group was accompanied by a tour leader with the initials EM,” Wisnu explained.

Meanwhile, five others openly acknowledged that their main purpose was to travel to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj pilgrimage. Two of them, a married couple from Ponorogo with the initials DA and KA, registered through Travel TM at a cost of IDR 250 million per person after receiving information via TikTok.

Another individual, SNB, said his foster child registered him for IDR 185 million. They were reportedly waiting for tasreh, or official Hajj permits, in Hainan before continuing their journey to Saudi Arabia.

Investigators also questioned the tour leader, who acted as Travel F’s operations manager. “The operations manager, with the initials EM, admitted his role was only to accompany the tour to Hainan. He claimed he was unaware that many participants were using Saudi work visas, since his agency did not process visas,” Wisnu said.

The alleged perpetrator will be charged under Article 124 of the Hajj and Umrah Law, which carries a maximum sentence of eight years in prison, Articles 122 and 121 of the same law with a maximum of six years, and/or Article 492 of the new Criminal Code on fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of four years.

“The evidence seized includes 31 Saudi Arabian work visas, 32 Indonesian passports, and 32 boarding passes for flight ID7157,” Wisnu added. ***