The 23-year-old Noosa man who went on an alleged drunken rampage in Indonesia has spoken out about the entire affair after settling the dispute with a large compensation sum of $25,000.
Bodhi Mani Risby-Jones was accused of assaulting local fisherman Edi Ron during what was alleged to be a “drunken”, “naked” rampage on the island of Simeulue in the Indonesian province of Aceh, the only part of the country that implements Sharia Law.
Risby-Jones told The Australian his version of events, which included him taking a single shot of vodka to calm his nerves (which were apparently high as he fretted about how to get off the island) and then went down from the Lantik Moon Beach Resort to the local beach for a naked swim after he couldn’t sleep.
That’s apparently when things went from pleasant to positively awful.
“People were starting to make a bit of a scene and then one person came up very close to me and I’m like, ‘go away, I’m just going to the resort’, but they didn’t understand me obviously because they don’t speak English,” he told the publication.
“They came up to me very close and I pushed them away.
“Then they started to get angry. One person came up to grab me so I punched him.
“There was a motorbike there and, to tell everyone to leave me alone, I threw the motorbike and that’s how Edi Ron got hurt.”
38-year-old fisherman Edi Ron reportedly suffered wounds on his foot and broken bones from the incident.
The victim’s wife spoke to the ABC and shed some light on her husband’s injuries after he was transferred to a bigger hospital in the province’s capital of Banda Aceh.
“The doctor here told us that the wound in his right ankle was infected and had an abscess, so they operated on him,” Eri Saljuna said.
“The wound is serious. The muscles were torn and the bone dislocated.”
He reportedly also suffered a cracked heel bone, a broken ankle and required 50 stitches.
Risby-Jones faced a variety of punishments from being “flogged 40 times” under Sharia Law to five years in prison. However, under Indonesia’s restorative justice system, it was agreed that he would attend a reconciliation meeting with Edi Ron to discuss a compensation sum.
The Noosa man was originally asked for $60,000, but agreed upon $25,000.
According to data by CEIC Data, the average monthly income of someone living in the province of Aceh is 1,731,183.000 IDR (AUD $174).
“Staying in an Indonesian cell for a month is hard for the body and for mental (wellbeing) … but considering everything, I think my health is doing good,” Risby-Jones, who is now returning to Noosa, told the ABC.
“I would say know the rules when you go travel overseas, especially to Aceh in Indonesia, it’s very different to Bali.
“The laws are very strict and for me, I didn’t know the full laws of, like Sharia Law, they take things extremely seriously so check up on your laws and know what you’re going to do before you travel somewhere.”
Bodhi’s family released a statement on his behalf, which apologised for disrespecting the people of Indonesia, as well as for the embarrassment to Australians.
“He is embarrassed and ashamed of his behaviour and wants to hand on heart apologise,” the statement read.
