Indonesia begins talks with Britain to repatriate UK's 'most prolific rapist'

8/2/2025 11:42

Indonesia has begun talks with Britain to repatriate the most prolific rapist in British history, a senior minister said, following its move to also seek the return of a Guantanamo Bay detainee accused of being one of the Bali bomb plotters.



Reynhard Sinaga, 41, was found guilty in Manchester in 2020 of assaulting 48 men, whom he drugged after taking them back to his apartment from bars and clubs in the British city.



A Manchester court ruled that Sinaga must serve at least 30 years in prison for a total of 159 offences committed from January 2015 to May 2017.



Indonesia's senior minister for law and human rights affairs, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, told reporters late on Thursday that talks with the British government were at an early stage.



The mechanism for such a repatriation would be decided later, he said, either through a prisoner transfer or through an exchange with a British prisoner jailed in Indonesia.



The British embassy in Jakarta said on Saturday it does not have a prisoner transfer agreement with Indonesia, which it said would be required to transfer any prisoner from the country.



Indonesia is also looking at ways to repatriate Riduan Isamuddin, better known as Hambali, who was accused of being involved in some deadly attacks including the 2002 Bali bombings.