Ukrainian Woman Arrested after Breaking into ATM in Bali

TheIndonesia.id - A 33-year-old Ukrainian woman was arrested after breaking into an ATM worth Rp 325,600,000 (USD 22,655).

Baklanova Khrystyna illegally withdrew money by transferring the victims' money to a virtual account OY, an application service that facilitates transfer transactions without administration fees.

"This perpetrator is a citizen of Ukraine. Her part of the job is only taking the money. We are still trying to investigate more for the perpetrators behind this," said Ary Satriyan at a press conference in the Bali Police Headquarters, Thursday, December 9, 2021.

The transaction was carried out using a magnetic card obtained from a guy she called 'Mister.'

There were two victims from Bau Bau Regency, South Sulawesi, named Nur Hayati and Marda, who reported losing their savings. Previously, on Wednesday, December 8, the victims reported their money had decreased without any transaction. From this report, the bank checked and analyzed the customers' transactions.

"The bank found something fishy in the transaction in Bali. The victims were in Southeast Sulawesi, while the transaction was made in Bali. The police found the same identical woman took money from different ATMs from the CCTV. She changed her outfit and helmet at every ATM," he said.

Ary explained that the perpetrator's role was to withdraw money, but not in cash. She transferred the money to the virtual account at the ATM. In addition, she had the PIN of the target account she was going to transfer.

"When we asked her why she didn't withdraw the money directly, she answered that the ATM's limit was only Rp 10 million (USD 695). By using a virtual account, she could withdraw more. The total loss of the victims in Sulawesi was IDR 325,600,000 (USD 22,655)," he said again.

For his actions, the perpetrator was charged with Article 30 in conjunction with Article 46 of the Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 19 of 2016 concerning Information and Electronic Transactions (ITE) in conjunction with Article 362 of the Criminal Code.