Britain’s most prolific rapist could be sent back to Indonesia
Reynhard Sinaga assaulted 48 men in the space of two years
The British government is speaking with Indonesia about repatriating the most prolific rapist in UK history.
Reynhard Sinaga, 41, was in 2020 found guilty of assaulting 48 men in Manchester.
Sinaga met his victims at bars and clubs, then took them back to his apartment, where he drugged and raped them.
He was sentenced to at least 30 years in prison for 159 offences, which he committed between January 2015 and 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.
"No matter how wrong a citizen is, the country has the obligation to defend its citizen," Yusril said.
"It's not an easy job for us," he said, adding there are many things that need to be negotiated with the British government.
The British embassy in Indonesia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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.
Under British rules, Sinaga is only able to file for leniency after he has been in jail for 30 years, Yusril said.
Sinaga's family have met with the ministry's representative to seek his repatriation.
If the British government agrees to his return he would be jailed in a maximum security prison, Yusril said. "Otherwise he will cause new problems."
Sinaga, who has been in the UK since 2007, targeted young men who looked drunk or vulnerable and rendered them unconscious with a sedative.
The rape investigation was the largest in British legal history.