Image: Alleged screenshot from the viral video. Credit: radarmalang.id
Bali Polda released more details on the Bulgarian kidnapping last night. Six men are now suspects, while the other ten apprehended yesterday are being treated as witnesses for the moment.
From the investigation results so far, the motive for the kidnapping of George Jordanov, 47, was revenge, as it was disclosed that the victim had attacked one of the suspects in October 2017.
Among the suspects are three foreigners, two from Turkey and one from Bulgaria. The rest are Indonesian citizens. Police are also questioning 10 more Indonesians related to a video circulating after the kidnapping.
“It’s a shame that this case involves a community organization (Ormas). The field coordinator of the group had the idea to kidnap the victim. Meanwhile, the video, including the ransom request, filmed by one of the suspects, was sent by a friend of the victim via WhatsApp to the Bulgarian General Consul,” said Bali Polda Special Investigations Unit Director, Commissioner Sang Made Mahendra Jaya, accompanied by the Head of Public Relation Partnership, Police Commissioner Ismi Rahayu at a press conference yesterday.
Commissioner Mahendra Jaya stated that after receiving the report from the Bulgarian consulate on Monday, he commanded a police team to investigate the case. The police then began searching for the victim. Based on the data and information, one of the Ormas members, Ken, was seen in the Kebab Turkish Restaurant on Jalan Dewi Sri, Legian, Kuta. Police followed the man when he left the restaurant. He went to the Indonesian Air Force base near Ngurah Rai Airport, Tuban, Badung in a Toyota Innova. “At this point our men coordinated with Tuban Air Force guards,” he said.
Ken was detained by police with two other people in the car, both Turkish citizens. The police were taken by the suspects to a house on Jalan Kampus Unud Gang Dispen I, Jimbaran at around 11.30pm. “We found the victim inside, cuffed and with a person guarding over him,” he said to balipost.com.
When the suspects were interrogated, they said that on Saturday at around 9.30pm, the victim was walking to a minimarket to buy a cigarette on Jalan Sunset Road, Kuta. When he passed the kebab restaurant that belongs to one of the suspects, M, he met Ken. After a brief talk, Ken and an accomplice beat the victim. Then he was dragged to a room at the back of the restaurant. Then, kebab owner, M, arrived with a woman. They covered the victim’s eyes with a shirt and put him into a car. After 10 minutes, the car stopped and his eyes were uncovered. The victim saw that he was in a kind of jungle. Then he was locked in the house.
“The man was released two hours after the report came in. Then we investigated the case until Tuesday,” he said.
It became known during the investigation that the motive was revenge. On October 25, 2017 at 11am, M was stopped by the victim and his friends on Jalan Sunset Road, Seminyak, Kuta. Then M was forced into a car and they asked 20,000 Euros from him. When he could not supply the money, he was bashed, and his wallet was taken. Then, after asking 10,000 Euro, which he couldn’t get a hold of either, they beat him again and threw him into the jungle in Tabanan area.
On December 13, 2017, M and Ken found the men that beat him up, including Jordanov, staying in a homestay in Legian, and another man staying in a villa on Jalan Dewi Sri. They were caught and delivered to Kuta police. M reported the case again to Bali Polda on February 6 (after being arrested. ED).
“We are also investigating this case, too,” Mahendra Jaya said.
