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Young Aussie could be flogged and jailed after a drunken night out in Indonesia that angered locals so much they threatened to burn down his hotel
Noosa man charged with alcohol-filled rampage
Bodhi Mani Risby-Jones on vacation in Indonesia
He is accused of beating a local motorcyclist
The 22-year-old now faces five years behind bars
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An Australian man has been arrested in an ultra-conservative Indonesian province where Sharia law is enforced, charged with an alcohol-fuelled, naked rampage.
Bodhi Mani Risby-Jones, 22, faces up to five years behind bars after being detained on Simeulue Island, off the coast of Sumatra, on Thursday morning.
Police allege the 22-year-old had been drinking vodka before emerging from his room at the Moon Beach Resort naked just after midnight.
Simeulue Police Chief Senior Commissioner Jatmiko alleged that Risby-Jones punched a guard in the neck, causing him to fall to the floor as he left the hotel.
He came out of his room naked. The security guard tried to stop him but was hit in the neck and fell down,” Jatmiko told the The Sydney Morning Herald.
He then went out into the street and disturbed passersby. He beat almost everyone who was on the street.’
Bodhi Mani Risby-Jones, 22, faces up to five years behind bars after being detained by police on Simeulue Island, off the coast of Sumatra, charged with drunkenness
The police chief claimed the 22-year-old knocked a local man off his motorcycle and then threw the bike on top of him after it ended up in the gutter.
He said the lower part of the rider’s leg had been ripped open and needed 50 stitches, with police getting involved after his wife filed a report.
Risby-Jones, originally from Noosa on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, is now facing charges under Section 351 of Indonesia’s Penal Code.
The charge of assault resulting in grievous bodily harm carries a maximum sentence of five years behind bars.
In Aceh, Sharia law is enforced, where the sale and consumption of alcohol is prohibited and public beatings for moral transgressions continue to occur.
People who visit and live in the province can be flogged for drinking alcohol, homosexuality, pre-martial sex and adultery.
Simeulue Police Chief Senior Commissioner Jatmiko said Risby-Jones (pictured) punched a guard in the neck after trying to stop him from leaving the hotel
Since the report the motorcyclist’s wife filed with police was about violence and not alcohol, under Islamic law Risby-Jones will not be investigated.
However, police have warned that they can still investigate the alcohol claims, and if they do, Sharia law may be applied.
Senior Commissioner Jatmiko said locals became so enraged after hearing about the injured motorcyclist that they threatened to burn down the 22-year-old’s hotel.
“When they found out, people got angry and almost set the resort on fire. Fortunately, the local police and the village chief managed to calm down the crowd,” he said.
Exceptions to the alcohol ban in Aceh can be made for tourists who choose to drink in private, the police chief explained.
Sharia law is enforced in Aceh, where the sale and consumption of alcohol is banned and public caning continues to take place for moral transgressions (pictured shows a man being caned in Aceh in May 2017)
He said police had allowed Risby-Jones to bring in one bottle of alcohol, and said officers had the right to check luggage at the airport because of Sharia law.
The Noosa man told police he had come to Simeulue Island with a buddy as part of a three-week surfing holiday in Indonesia.
Three Indonesian men each received 40 lashes after being accused of drinking in the ultra-conservative province in 2021.
Aceh is the only Indonesian province where Sharia law is observed. The pristine beaches and clean breaks at Simeulue make the island popular with surfers.
Bodhi Mani Risby-Jones: Noosa man, 22, accused of drunken, naked rampage in Indonesia