Malaysian influencer apologises for faking friend's disappearance in Indonesian forest

Malaysian social media influencer Ammar Nazhan has apologised after faking the disappearance of fellow content creator Eyka in Indonesia.

In a TikTok video, Nazhan claimed that the 22-year-old had gone missing in a forest in Kota Bandung at around 2am on Monday (Feb 3) while they were filming "paranormal activities" together.

On Wednesday, he posted a video to the platform showing her apparent rescue, which was met with doubt by netizens, before posting a follow-up the next day insisting that the incident was not fake.

However, investigations by the Indonesian police have confirmed the disappearance was a hoax. 

Panyileukan district police chief commissioner Kompol Kurnia said on Thursday, according to a report by Indonesian media Kumparan: "The sensational content was made purely to increase viewership and followers.

"They did not realise that Indonesian law prescribes heavy penalties on those who spread false news."

He added that Nazhan and his team have submitted a written and video apology to the police.

Ammar and another influencer, Aras bin Abdullah, said in a video posted online: "We would like to apologise for what happened and we promise not to repeat it."

drimac@asiaone.com