“They took our passports” – Over 400 M’sians Allegedly Extorted of RM9 Mil by Police at Music Festival in Indonesia

Many Malaysians who attended the music festival in Jakarta recently were allegedly harassed by police in the country.

Malaysians who attended the Djakarta Warehouse Project (DWP) music festival that began on December 13 and ended on December 15 swarmed social media to share their horrifying experience when X page @Twt_Rave shared how much Indonesian police allegedly made from coercing bribes.

“Over 400 Malaysians were extorted (by police for money) during DWP 2024, with over RM9 million of bribe money collected. The police even waited outside the hotels when the concertgoers were checking out.”

The Indonesian police allegedly extorted money from many concertgoers, including Malaysians who claimed they were forced to pay fines, despite passing the drug tests.

“Our bank accounts were frozen temporarily due to excessive overseas transactions”

A Thread user who wished to remain anonymous also shared the tweet and had some stories to share. In a conversation with WORLD OF BUZZ, John (pseudonym), who attended DWP 2024 said he did not experience the harassment but unfortunately, he couldn’t say the same for his friends who were detained and asked to pay a whopping IDR 800,000,000 (approximately RM221,750)!

“They were released from the station but they still needed to pay IDR 500,000,000 (approximately RM140,000) before they can have their passports back,” John told WORLD OF BUZZ.

John also said the detained friends couldn’t pay all the “fines” at once as their banks temporarily halted transactions after detecting too many attempts for overseas transactions. At the time of writing (December 19), his friends have yet to retrieve their passports.

The organiser released a statement

Just last night (December 18), DWP released an official statement to highlight the ongoing concern and said while they deeply regret what happened, certain situations were beyond their control.

However, DWP assured the concertgoers, especially those who were affected by the incident that investigations are ongoing.

“Your safety, well-being, and experiences are – and will always remain our top priorities. We’re working with relevant authorities to investigate the matter thoroughly, and measures are being taken to prevent the same incident from happening again in the future.”

DWP also wished the safety of all who attended the show in Jakarta, Indonesia, and thanked those who have been supporting the music festival.

“Thank you for standing with us. From Indonesia to the world, with all our hearts.”

To those who attended DWP, do share with us your stories in case you experienced anything unpleasant!

Also read: PDRM Responds to Viral Images of a Police Officer in KL Making Lewd, Sexual Gestures at M’sian Woman