Young Diplomat’s Death: Public Urged to Refrain from Speculation and Respect Legal Process

Jakarta — The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemenlu) has asked the public not to link the death of young diplomat Arya Daru Pangayunan to his previous work. This request was made to quell wild speculation circulating among the public.

The Director of Protection of Indonesian Citizens at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Judha Nugraha, stated that Arya Daru had indeed been a witness in a human trafficking (TPPO) case, but this could not be directly linked to his death.

“He has (been a witness in a TPPO case), but that shouldn’t be linked. We’ll wait and see what happens. We’re waiting for the results of the police investigation. We shouldn’t speculate,” said Judha.

Judha explained that the deceased Arya was tasked with handling issues related to Indonesian citizens outside Southeast Asia and the Middle East, including the evacuation of Indonesian citizens from Iran and handling problematic Indonesian citizens in Turkey. Arya was previously involved in a TPPO case in Japan, but that case has since been resolved.

“The deceased was not handling (human trafficking) cases in Cambodia,” added Judha, dismissing circulating allegations of links to similar cases in Southeast Asia.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized that it is currently awaiting the results of the official police investigation.

“Please ask the police. We are awaiting the results of the police investigation,” said Judha.

Meanwhile, the Central Jakarta Metro Police have begun an in-depth investigation into the death of Arya Daru, who was found dead in his boarding house in the Menteng area, Central Jakarta, on Tuesday (July 8).

Head of the Central Jakarta Metro Police Criminal Investigation Unit, Commissioner Karyono, stated that his team will summon several additional witnesses. Police have examined several witnesses and CCTV footage from the area. However, no definitive conclusion has been reached regarding Arya’s cause of death.

“We will summon Ministry of Foreign Affairs employees, relatives, and the victim’s family for questioning in the investigation into the death of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs employee. The autopsy results have not yet been released. We cannot yet conclude the cause of death,” explained Karyono.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the police have both urged the public to exercise restraint and respect the ongoing legal process, in order to maintain the integrity of the investigation and respect the grieving families.