INS named suspect after armed Timor deer-poaching case in Komodo Park
Forestry law enforcers have arrested INS and named him a suspect in armed Timor deer poaching inside Komodo National Park, linking him to a 2025 operation where alleged hunters resisted officers at sea.
Editor: Mursyid Sonsang
· 4 min read
Labuan Bajo — Forestry investigators have named a man identified as INS a suspect in an armed deer-poaching case inside Komodo National Park, following his arrest in late August after several months on the run from a 2025 enforcement operation, according to the Forestry Ministry and local media.
The Jakarta Post reported that INS and four other hunters are accused of illegally hunting Timor deer (Rusa timorensis) in the park on December 13, 2025, using three firearms. The article quotes Ambrosius Dalija of the Jawa, Bali, Nusa Tenggara Forestry Law Enforcement Agency as saying INS was identified as a suspect in the case after spending months as a fugitive.
A press statement from the Ministry of Forestry’s Law Enforcement Directorate (Balai Gakkum Kehutanan Wilayah Jawa Bali Nusa Tenggara) says INS, 33, was one of several alleged members of a hunting group that carried out Timor deer poaching in the Loh Laju Pemali area on Komodo Island on December 13, 2025. The ministry notes that some members of the group were arrested during the December 2025 operation, while others escaped and were later placed on a wanted list.
Arrest in Bima and transfer to Labuan Bajo
According to the Forestry Ministry, INS was arrested on Wednesday, August 26, 2026 at around 20:05 local time in Sumi village, Lambu district, Bima regency, West Nusa Tenggara, in a joint operation involving forestry civil investigators and police units from Bima and West Manggarai. After his arrest, he was taken to Bima City Police headquarters and then processed further in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara.
The Jakarta Post reports that INS is currently being held at the West Manggarai Police detention center in Labuan Bajo, citing Ambrosius Dalija. The newspaper describes him as a male suspect who had been a fugitive for months before his detention.
Allegations of armed resistance at sea
Both the Forestry Ministry and local media link INS’s case to an earlier armed confrontation between a joint enforcement team and alleged poachers in Komodo National Park in December 2025. The ministry states that INS fled during that enforcement operation against a hunting group that allegedly used firearms and offered armed resistance to the joint team in the park’s waters.
The Jakarta Post, citing Ambrosius Dalija, reports that INS is accused of illegally hunting Timor deer with firearms and of carrying three firearms when the joint team conducted enforcement operations at Komodo National Park in December. Dalija is quoted as saying that INS and his group had been hunting deer for years and that they obtained the firearms from another alleged perpetrator.
The Jakarta Post further reports that when officers pursued him, INS allegedly resisted arrest, fired his gun toward the officers’ speedboat and escaped by swimming with several other hunters. The Forestry Ministry press statement similarly describes INS as one of the individuals who fled during the December 2025 armed operation before later being tracked down and arrested.
Charges and ongoing legal process
In its statement, the Forestry Ministry says INS is suspected of violating provisions of Indonesia’s conservation law and the Criminal Code in relation to protected wildlife and firearm use. It specifies that he is alleged to have breached Article 40A paragraph (1) letter d in conjunction with Article 21 paragraph (2) letter a of Law No. 32 of 2024, which amends Law No. 5 of 1990 on the Conservation of Living Natural Resources and their Ecosystems, along with Article 55 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code and other regulations on firearm possession.
The Jakarta Post reports that investigators from the forestry law enforcement agency questioned INS in Labuan Bajo on August 31, 2026. The newspaper does not describe any statement from INS or his legal counsel about the allegations. The Forestry Ministry notes that further examination of INS is being carried out by its investigators in coordination with police and prosecutors.
Timor deer are a protected species within Komodo National Park, which is designated as a conservation area and major tourism destination in East Nusa Tenggara. Authorities describe the case as part of a broader effort to curb armed poaching of protected wildlife in the park’s terrestrial and marine zones.
As of the latest official and media reports, INS has been arrested and named a suspect, while other alleged members of the hunting group remain on the wanted list. The allegations have not yet been tested in court, and investigators stress that legal proceedings are ongoing.