‘Uncivilised crime’: Australian man in custody for alleged attack on religious Indonesian leader

An Aussie has been arrested after allegedly performing a “disgraceful” act inside an Indonesian mosque – but now he’s claiming he is the “victim”.

Indonesia authorities have arrested an Australian man for allegedly spitting in a imam's face. Picture: Instagram / @tribunbogor

Indonesian authorities have arrested an Australian man after he was allegedly captured spitting in a respected prayer leader’s face in a video that’s since gained a global audience.

The incident comes just one day after a Brisbane man was taken into custody for an unrelated event while holidaying in a different Indonesian province.

Imam Muhammad Basri Anwar was delivering a prayer from the Koran at Jami Al-Muhajir Mosque on Friday when he was confronted by the man later identified as educator Brenton Craig Abbas Abdullah McArthur.

The footage, which is circulating on social media, shows the 47-year-old allegedly entering the religious venue located in the province of West Java, before approaching the mosque pulpit.

As the Imam recited verses of the religious text, it’s alleged Mr McArthur uttered “inappropriate” words to the non-English speaker with the confrontation taking an ugly turn when the Australian man spat in the priest’s face, according to local media.

“Because of being spat at, the mosque‘s priest ran away (and) entered the mosque’s prosperity council office,” Indonesia news site TribunnewsBogor.com reported on its Instagram.

Imam Basri Anwar told the platform he believed Mr McArthur was “disturbed” by the recitation, which allegedly motivated him to engage in such a “disgraceful act”.

“When it’s Holy Friday, there’s always Koran recitation. It seems he (a bule man) felt disturbed,” he said.

In Indonesia, “bule” is a term used to refer to the word “foreigner”.

Brenton Craig Abbas Abdullah McArthur was arrested in Indonesia on Friday. Picture: Instagram / @brentonmcarthur

Mr McArthur was later arrested by police at the Soekarno Hatta International Airport after video of the incident went viral online.

“We immediately ask(ed) immigration to stop him and cancel him from leaving the country,” Bandung police chief Budi Sartono said in a media statement on Saturday.

“We immediately pick(ed) him up at the airport and (took) him to the Bandung Police Station for interrogation. We will see how the interrogation result(s) later.”

It’s understood Mr McArthur was staying at a hotel next to the mosque, which he checked out of on the same day of the incident.

However, no assumptions have been made suggesting the self-proclaimed philosopher was trying to flee police, with reports suggesting he already had a ticket on hand for a flight back to Australia prior to the incident.

Despite his arrest, Mr McArthur denies any wrongdoing and has released a statement to his Instagram account.

“Stop crying all your racist tears,” the statement accompanying a video of Mr McArthur reads.

“I am a Muslim and this is just a racist, threatening a bule and laughing being a coward.”

Mr McArthur denies any wrongdoings. Picture: Instagram / @brentonmcarthur

A caption alongside the post also added: “Span (sic) this with your racist hate. I am the victim, you shameless racist”.

The post has since received backlash from infuriated locals, with many calling his alleged actions an “uncivilised crime”.

“WE DON’T CARE whether you are Muslim or not. One thing that is clear is that YOU SPIT on someone in the mosque. It is uncivilised and a CRIME,” one frustrated person commented.

“Respect us who live here, before you ask to be respected.”

“You claim to be Muslim but your behaviour doesn‘t reflect yourself as a Muslim let alone spit on the imam of the mosque, or maybe you are Muslim but your brain doesn’t work properly?” another person questioned.

A third comment demanded: “You should apologise to the victim, to us Indonesian people”.

“This country is the most welcoming for foreigners, but not for the arrogant, impolite, and uncivilised people.”

Footage captured the Aussie man approaching the imam from multiple angles. Picture: Instagram / @tribunbogor

It’s understood Mr McArthur is still being questioned by police and could face deportation and a ban from entering Indonesia as punishment.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said it’s ready to provide “consular assistance” to Mr McArthur.

“Due to privacy obligations, we are unable to provide further information,” they added.

The incident comes just a day after Brisbane tradie Bodhi Mani Risby-Jones’ arrest in the Indonesia province of Aceh for an alleged drunken rampage that saw him trying to snatch a motorbike while naked on Thursday.

Mr Risby-Jones told the ABC he felt “almost possessed” after drinking “just one shot” of vodka prior to the incident.

“It was not a good feeling. I wasn’t myself. Normally I am a very nice guy,” he said.

Under Islamic law, the consumption and sale of alcohol is banned in Aceh with the 23-year-old now facing the prospect of spending time in an Indonesia jail.

He could also be subject to 40 lashes with a cane, as this is a regular punishment for such offences.