Bekasi Resident Dies in Cambodia, Family Alleges Torture

April 18, 2025 | 11:59 am

TEMPO.CO, Bekasi - Ikhwan Sahab, a resident of Babelan, Bekasi Regency, West Java, was reported to have died in Cambodia on Monday, April 14, 2025. He was only 27 years old. According to his family, Ikhwan died after being subjected to torture allegedly carried out by the scamming company where he was employed.

The victim’s younger brother, Subyantoro, 23, said the family received news of Ikhwan’s passing from the Indonesian Embassy in Phnom Penh. Before his death, Ikhwan had reportedly been hospitalized since March 28, 2025.

"We were informed by a nurse. She said that my brother had been in a coma for two days at the hospital, which means he was admitted around March 28," Subyantoro told reporters on Thursday, April 17.

After regaining consciousness, Ikhwan managed to communicate with his brother several times via video call. During these conversations, Subyantoro saw that Ikhwan's body was covered in injuries.

"There were many [injuries]—his eyes were bruised, there were wounds on his hands, legs, torso, and what looked like burn marks near his lower back. He also suffered a brain hemorrhage," he recounted.

When asked what had happened, Ikhwan said he had been subjected to abuse after failing to meet his work targets.

He told his brother that he had been beaten over the course of two days by a group of 15 individuals, including superiors and colleagues of both Chinese and Indonesian nationality. "He said, ‘I did not make the quota, I did not meet the target.’ Then he was dragged into a room, beaten, kicked, and electrocuted," Subyantoro said.

Following the assault, Ikhwan reportedly lost consciousness and was left on a roadside without clothing. He was later found in critical condition by local police, who took him to the hospital immediately.

Although his condition initially improved with treatment, it began to deteriorate again before he was ultimately pronounced dead.

Ikhwan had traveled to Cambodia in early February 2024. At the time, he told his family he had been officially transferred by his former employer. "He said it was a relocation from his previous company," Subyantoro explained.

In reality, Ikhwan had been promised a position as an online gambling (judol) administrator with a salary of Rp30–Rp40 million per month. Upon arriving in Cambodia, he was instead placed in a scam operation targeting fellow Indonesians.

As of now, the victim's body remains at a hospital in Cambodia. According to Subyantoro, the Indonesian Embassy estimated that repatriation of the remains would cost approximately Rp200 million. Due to financial constraints, the family has decided to allow burial to take place in Cambodia.

"The family has requested that the entire funeral process be thoroughly documented—with photos, videos, and records of the washing, shrouding, and prayer rituals," he said.

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