The Bali Police says it is cracking down on customized license plates on vehicles primarily driven by foreigners — including those from Russia — after the issue was thrust into the spotlight by the community Instagram account @moscow_cabang_bali.
Police told Coconuts Bali that they gave reprimands to four foreign nationals on Sunday for the serious traffic violation of driving with customized license plates. Among their other noted violations were driving a motorbike with no helmet, license, and no form of personal identification.
The foreigners may face further sanctions pending police investigations into their separate violations.
On Saturday, the Bali Police announced that they launched a crackdown on customized license plates by stepping up patrols in tourist hotspots like Kuta, Seminyak, Canggu, and Ubud. It noted that the violators “were predominantly foreign nationals.”
Police also said that they are pursuing vehicles that sported customized license plates that suggested Russian ownership.
“We urge whoever owns the vehicles with the Russian license plates to have the self-awareness to replace them with the official license plates. And for the public who may be aware of the whereabouts of those vehicles to report them to us,” the police said in a press release.
The anonymous social media activist behind the viral @moscow_cabang_bali account, which has gained a huge following for publicly calling out allegedly undocumented workers in Bali, has recently been posting crowdsourced footage of foreigners with custom license plates as well.
Among the snaps they’ve posted are those depicting blatantly Russian license plates sported by an Audi, a Lamborghini, and numerous motorbikes. One two-wheeler even had “Ruskii Turist” as its license plate.
Under the 2009 Law on Traffic and Land Transportation, using an unofficial license plate is an offense punishable by up to two months in prison or a fine of IDR500K (US$32.68). However, depending on the scale and severity of the offense, violators may also be charged with falsifying official documents, which is punishable by up to six years in prison under the Criminal Code (KUHP).
More on @moscow_cabang_bali
