A 16-year-old from Jakarta, identified by his initials RTJ , is under police investigation over a viral video in which he threatened to kill President Joko Widodo, which he later said was a joke.
In the video, which has been circulating online since yesterday, a bare-chested RTJ points to a portrait of the president and says, “I will shoot him in the head, shackle him. He’s my slave.” The teenager then went on, “Crazy Jokowi, I’ll burn his house down. President, I challenge you, find me within 24 hours. You don’t find me, I win.”
Well, it didn’t take long for the Jakarta Metro Police to find RTJ at his house in West Jakarta. The police picked him up yesterday afternoon and his parents came to accompany him.
After their initial questioning, the police said they did not believe there was any actual intent by RTJ to harm the president.
“We are currently interrogating and investigating [RTJ]. But essentially the culprit is underage, 16, and this is just a case of teenagers fooling around,” Jakarta Metro Police Spokesperson Argo Yuwono said yesterday, as quoted by CNN Indonesia.
Argo added that RTJ was dared by his friends to make the video, which would explain the giggles heard behind the camera and how RTJ himself looked like he was trying to suppress laughter.
“So these kids were just joking around but they didn’t know about the consequences and that the police would be able to find out who they are,” Argo said.
It’s unclear if RTJ will face criminal charges, but it’s likely he won’t due to his legal status as a minor.
Under Indonesia’s Information and Electronic Transactions Act (UU ITE), making threats against another person online is a crime punishable by up to 6 years’ imprisonment.
Last year, an 18-year-old (not a minor) in Medan, North Sumatra was arrested for posting memes about Jokowi and challenging the police to catch him. He was charged with online defamation under UU ITE, which is punishable by up to 4 years’ imprisonment, but was sentenced to 18 months.