November 26, 2025
JAKARTA – After eight months with no progress, the disappearance of six-year-old AKN in Pesanggrahan, South Jakarta, finally saw a breakthrough, only after the case went viral, culminating in the arrest of his stepfather last week, who later died by suicide in police custody.
According to Jakarta Police, the boy was found as a skeleton on the banks of the Cilalay River in Tenjo, Bogor Regency, West Java, some 40 kilometers from where he was last seen in Pesanggrahan on March 6.
AKN’s remains were discovered among a pile of trash on Sunday with the help of sniffer dogs, alongside a long-sleeved white shirt and shorts believed to be his. Two days before the discovery, police had arrested the boy’s stepfather, Alex Iskandar, after gathering witness statements and conducting a formal case review.
Although the boy’s family reported him missing shortly after his disappearance in March, police were only able to crack the case this month, following the viral abduction case of a four-year-old girl identified as B, who was allegedly a victim of child trafficking. B was abducted in Makassar, South Sulawesi, and later found in Jambi, Sumatra, more than 2,000 kilometers west of Makassar, after being passed between multiple parties.
“We have interrogated [Alex] but he denied any involvement during our earlier questioning [after the family report],” Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Budi Hermanto said during a press conference on Monday.
“But after conducting a deeper investigation involving more than 20 witnesses, we obtained enough information to name him a suspect,” he added.
Read also: Parents step up vigilance amid spike in child abductions
The police has since named Alex as a suspect in the case, concluding that the 49-year-old kidnapped his stepson while the boy was playing near a mosque in Pesanggrahan, reportedly due to a grudge against the child’s mother.
South Jakarta precinct criminal investigation department head Adj. Sr. Comr. Ardian Satrio Utomo said the abduction and homicide were driven by Alex’s long-standing suspicions that his wife, who worked overseas, was having an affair.
“Based on the suspect’s online conversations, investigators found strong indications that his motive was revenge,” Ardian said on Monday. However, just before undergoing medical checkup prior to his transfer to the detention center, Alex was found dead in a counseling room. Police later alleged him of committing suicide.
The eight-month long search for the child’s body has drawn national attention, highlighting criticism of the police’s sluggish progress in handling the case. Lawmakers have urged authorities to respond more swiftly and seriously to such urgent matters.
“We strongly hope and request the police to be more responsive and agile in handling various criminal cases, especially those involving child abductions,” House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Saan Mustopa said on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara.
The National Police’s National Criminal Information Center recorded 50 abductions involving victims under 20 years of age between January and November this year nationwide, or almost twice the number recorded in 2022.
Most of the victims were reportedly targeted through illegal adoption pages on social media.
Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Arifatul Choiri Fauzi had expressed deep concern over the recent surge in child abductions, citing weak supervision, the misuse of social media to monitor children’s activities and other factors that have made minors increasingly vulnerable.
The ministry vowed to closely coordinate with relevant regional offices and the police to ensure rapid responses to missing-child reports. “The public can report incidents through the Sahabat Perempuan dan Anak [SAPA] 129 hotline or WhatsApp 08111-129-129. Child safety is our shared priority,” she said earlier this month.