BBC News
· collected 2026-10-10 · by Endang Nurdin, Rebecca Henschke, BBC Indonesia
Ahmad Imanuddin Sumar, a former headmaster of an Islamic boarding school in Lombok, Indonesia, was detained as a suspect in sexual abuse cases following a BBC investigation. The case involves allegations from multiple students, with two prominent figures being Ziadatur Rahmah and Sukma Rohana Fajar, who spearheaded the evidence collection against Sumar, known to students as Abah. Police reopened the case after 12 more former students came forward with testimonies following the publication of the BBC report.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-10,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
- Published
A former headmaster of an Islamic boarding school in Indonesia has been named as a suspect in a sexual abuse investigation and detained by police, following a BBC Eye report.
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headmaster → publish → report
Ahmad Imanuddin Sumar, known to students as Abah, led the Abul Barokat boarding school on the island of Lombok.
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Sumar → know → Lombok
Police reopened the case after the BBC World Service revealed accusations of sexual abuse against him, and documented how former students had gathered evidence in an effort to bring the allegations to the authorities.
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students → reopen → authorities
The story sparked public outrage and led to 12 more former students giving testimony to police.
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students → spark → police
Warning: This story contains details of sexual assault
The student detectives
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story → contain → assault
They launched their own investigation after Zia told a former classmate, Yusron Azzahidi, that the headteacher had sexually assaulted her when she was 17.
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she → launch → her
By the time Zia confided in Yusron, she was studying in Cairo, Egypt, while he was in Jakarta.
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he → confide → Jakarta
Yusron suggested they gather evidence to support Zia's allegation.
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they → suggest → allegation
Speaking to former classmates, they spoke to Sukma, who alleges that Abah attempted to rape her at the school.
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Abah → speak → school
Yusron compiled a seven-page document detailing the allegations, and they gave it to representatives of Nahdlatul Wathan Diniyah Islamiyah (NWDI), the organisation that ran the school.
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that → compile → school
Thinking the school would support them, the students say that instead, they were pressured to withdraw their accusations.
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they → think → accusations
In a secretly recorded phone call, Abah pleaded with Yusron to protect him and his reputation.
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Abah → record → him
Everyone makes mistakes, my child," Abah said.
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Abah → make → mistakes
Abah also contacted Zia, who secretly recorded their conversation and shared it with the BBC.
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who → contact → BBC
In the recording, Abah is heard apologising, but pleads with her to remain silent.
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Abah → hear → her
Following the BBC investigation, Abah held a news conference where he denied all the allegations.
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he → follow → allegations
He did not deny that the voice heard in the recorded calls was his, but said the recordings were not confessions.
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recordings → deny → calls
Sukma told the BBC she had been forced to sign a document saying her allegations were lies.
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allegations → tell → document
She later secretly recorded a conversation with Abah's wife, known to students as Umi.
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She → record → Umi
In the recording, Umi tells Sukma that the document was intended to protect "her good name".
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document → tell → name
The former students eventually resumed their efforts to seek justice, with support from lawyer Joko Jumadi, who has experience in similar cases.
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who → resume → cases
More students come forward
The day after the BBC investigation was published, parents arrived at the school to collect their children, with some travelling from other islands.
One mother said she had begun crying when she heard the news, thinking about her daughter.
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she → come → daughter
"I'm moving her right now," she said.
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she → move → her
"I absolutely want my child to leave this school."
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child → want → school
Yusron said he and Zia, who recently got married, were overwhelmed by the response from former students.
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he → say → students
"It was beyond what we expected," he said.
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he → expect → what
"So many people contacted us - on Instagram, WhatsApp.
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people → contact → Instagram
They contacted me and Zia directly, and lots of them were saying, 'I'm a victim too'."
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I → contact → them
Police interviewed Zia and Sukma, along with the 12 other former students who came forward with allegations of abuse.
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who → interview → abuse
"They thought they were the only ones - and it's been really shocking for them to learn, like I did, that they weren't alone," Zia said.
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Zia → think → ?
Sukma said she felt relieved and grateful that the allegations are now being taken seriously.
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allegations → say → ?
I'm waiting for the day when he admits that himself," she told the BBC.
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she → wait → BBC
Abah has resigned from the school and has said he will respect the legal process.
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he → resign → process
The BBC contacted Abah and his wife during its original investigation, but they did not respond at the time.
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they → contact → time
NWDI denied trying to cover up the allegations and said it was investigating them internally.
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it → deny → them
It said it had a duty to protect the organisation from being tarnished by the alleged actions of individuals.
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it → say → individuals
In the wake of the BBC investigation, NWDI vowed to ensure such abuse never happened again and said it would safeguard the rights of students who came forward.
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who → vow → students
The Aporia
