Jakarta: theft of padel rackets Bullpadel Hidden in a pair of trousers, the police are investigating

Padel is becoming the trendiest sport in Jakarta — so much so, apparently, that it's giving some people ideas. In the Krukut district of Tamansari (West Jakarta), two men pulled off a small sporting feat of a completely different kind: leaving a padel equipment shop with two rackets. Bullpadel that they had not paid.

The incident, revealed by several Indonesian media outlets on Wednesday, August 12, actually took place on Monday, August 10 or 11, according to sources, in what the local press identifies as the store Padel Avenue Flagship Store Ironically, it wasn't the shopkeepers who alerted the police, but a cyber patrol — understand, police officers scrolling through social media as part of their job — after the video of the scene, published by lbj jakarta, went viral.

The modus operandi: diversion and elasticated trousers

The CCTV footage shows a scene almost like something out of a comedy sketch. The first man strikes up a conversation with the store employees, seemingly genuinely interested in buying equipment, asking questions about the available racket models. While the staff are busy helping him, his accomplice discreetly moves to the display area, grabs one racket, then a second, and slips them... into the front of his trousers, before covering them with his shirt.

The two men then left the shop like perfect customers who hadn't found anything to their liking. Except that, in terms of discretion, walking around with two padel rackets tucked into your trousers is more of a mime competition than the heist of the century — and it's precisely this slightly comical detail that went viral on Indonesian social media.

Jakarta: theft of padel rackets Bullpadel Hidden in a pair of trousers, the police are investigating.

The police confirm and are investigating, with no official complaint from the store.

Contacted by the local press, the head of the Tamansari police station, Police Commissioner Bobby M. Zulfikar, confirmed the events. He specified that his unit had gone to the scene on its own initiative, as the store had not yet filed a formal complaint (LP, for laporan polisi). Investigators are currently gathering evidence, including CCTV footage, to identify the two suspects.

For his part, the head of the police station's criminal investigation unit, Inspector Egy Irwansyah, also confirmed the incident to the media, stating that officers had gone to the scene that same day and were encouraging the shop to file a formal complaint. At present, neither the exact number of items stolen (beyond the two rackets visible in the video) nor the precise amount of the loss has been released, as the investigation is still ongoing.

Is padel tennis the new target of thieves in Jakarta?

This is not the first time a padel shop in the Indonesian capital has faced this kind of mishap. A few weeks earlier, a much more serious case had rocked the scene in South Jakarta: a shop employee had been accused of stealing ten padel rackets and a pair of shoes, a case that escalated to accusations of kidnapping and violence against the same employee, which are now being handled separately by the courts.

It's hard not to see this as a symptom of the padel boom in Indonesia: the sport is booming, and premium rackets, like the... Bullpadel They're expensive, and demand is exploding faster than the stocks of specialist shops. Clearly, this is whetting some less-than-sporting appetites.

What the alleged perpetrators risk

In Indonesian criminal law, simple theft falls under Article 362 of the Penal Code, theoretically punishable by several years of imprisonment depending on the circumstances and the value of the stolen property. However, the police must first formally identify the two individuals filmed—a bowler hat and sunglasses unfortunately do not render them invisible to an HD camera.

Two men, two rackets BullpadelA diversionary stunt reminiscent of a comedy duo act, and a video circulating widely on social media: that's the gist of this affair, which is both amusing and puzzling to padel retailers in Jakarta. The investigation continues, and one thing is certain: the next time a customer lingers a little too long admiring the rackets in the window, the Tamansari vendors will undoubtedly be keeping a close eye—or even two—on their every move.

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France to cover major French padel events.