Who Are the “3 Gus” Viral Figures in Indonesia 2025? Full Explanation of the Controversy
Who Are the “3 Gus” Viral Figures in Indonesia 2025? Full Explanation of the Controversy
The term “3 Gus” became a viral topic across Indonesian social media in early 2025, referring to three different figures involved in separate controversies: Agus Salim (blind case), I Agus Wayan Agus Suwartama (SA’s case), and Miftah Maulana Habiburrahman (Harassment case).
Although unrelated, their stories overlapped in public attention because their names both include the word “gus”. Leading netizens to group them together under one trending narrative.
1. Agus Salim (Blind Case) – Donation Controversy
The first figure, Agus Salim, gained attention after an acid attack incident in September 2024 that left him with severe eye injuries. The news said that the motive of the crime was because the employee from Agus company was offended by his rude treatment in the office.
The culprit already put on trial and Agus tries to open a donation because the treatment of his eyes that almost blind is expensive. With the help of Prathiwi Noviyanthi (Influencers of Humanity), his story went viral after appearing on the Youtube podcast Curhat Bang Denny Sumargo hosted by Denny Sumargo (one of biggest podcast in indonesia).
From that podcast, the donation money collected reached the number of 1.5 billion Rupiah (around USD 90.000) transferred directly to Agus's personal bank account. When netizens ask about the details transaction of the treatment cost, there's evidence that Agus using the money for his personal use, transferred the money to his relatives, and not for the treatment.
The hospital confirmed that Agus was using a government medical assistance card (BPJS Aka. Government Social Health Insurance) which means he never transferred any money to the hospital. Discovered this fraud, netizens became angry and wanted the money to be used correctly.
With the help of Prathiwi Noviyanti, she help Agus again by transferring all the money to her foundation, so the money can be controlled more strictly. But when all the money was transferred out, Agus sue Prathiwi Noviyanthi for stealing his money.
Starting from this point the polemic that happened in them became more complex and complicated, Netizens became angry after knowing that the Agus family was the one who caused all of the chaos. Peacefull problem solving has been initiated, but in the process, Agus side is the one who cause the trouble so many times, even turning to sue Denny Sumargo and Prathiwi Noviyanti.
Because of that the donators lost more trust and most netizens judging Agus as a fraud. Most of the donation money was returned and allocated to victims of natural disasters in Nusa Tenggara Timur, which took Agus's treatment took a long time delayed and made him fully blind.
2. I Agus Wayan Agus Suwartama – Criminal Case
The second figure, I Agus Wayan Agus Suwartama, went viral in late 2024 due to sexual assault that he did to 17 victims, 2 of them is underaged. The case gained widespread attention after a victim spoke up on Close The Door hosted by Deddy Corbuzier (one of the biggest podcast in Indonesia).
At first, the people didn't believe the case because of how a person with no hands could rape someone. But the victims managed to explain Agus's way of deviously manipulating his victims and its shocked everyone.
Shortly how Agus can manipulate all of the girls, he is the one who will play victim so the girls will feel compassion to help him. Before doing his act, Agus will do some profiling of the girl that becomes his target, mostly is the girl who mentally unstable and crying in the park.
Agus will approach them and then tell his hard life story as a handicapped person that often mistreated. Agus will motivate them and ask their personal story so it can be used to manipulate them later.
After doing long conversation, Agus asks the girl to be driven home, but later Agus misleads the girl to go into a hotel. The girl is trapped when they are both already inside the hotel room.
It's because Agus will use local rules/tradition that if an unmarried boy and girl were found together in a room would be married. Because the girl didn't want to be married to Agus, the girl stayed silent and followed all of Agus's instructions.
The victims that mostly in weak psychological states and unstable mental conditions, won't be able to think in a straight way and make agus easily manipulate them. On the other side, Agus is a disabled person, which means he already had his condition since he was little, he can use his other body parts as hands easily.
Agus will ask the girl to help him take a bath or do weird stuff that makes him go nude. If the girl refuses, Agus will threaten the girl again with her personal story which will be spread to social media. At the same time, agus will play victim and innocent like:
'how could I rape u, I had no hands' or
'how could I unclothe myself, I had no hands, please help me' or
'if u refuse my offer, I will be offended and sue you for abandoning disabled people who need help' or
'This is the way I say thanks to you because your story motivates me' etc.
Agus will keep repeating this method until the girl is also naked and sexual intercourse happens. On the other side agus not working alone, he sometimes asks for help from his mother or pays the hotel receptionist to do his motives.
Now Agus is still in the trial process with a sentence of 12 years in prison. After the case went viral, there were some clips showing that Agus could do multiple things such as driving a motorcycle, getting drunk, eating, etc with ease.
Agus also had a girlfriend, but apparently, he likes to cheat with other women which all of his victims, and fake his condition as a disabled person.
3. Gus Miftah – Public Backlash and Resignation
The third figure, Miftah Maulana Habiburrahman, widely known as Gus Miftah, faced backlash in early 2025 after a viral video showed him mocking a street vendor during a public sermon. As a context, In Indonesian Islamic culture, “Gus” is an honorific title often used for sons of respected Islamic scholars or preachers.
After the backlash, Gus Miftah clarified that the way of his speech is to represent most of his followers who mostly come from the Bronx people. Miftah apologized to people who offended and also to the man who sold iced tea.
But his apology video beside the man who sells iced tea shows Miftah's behavior dominating the Man who sells Iced tea and it went so awkward. There are also so many clips showing Miftah's mocking speech has been done multiple times in many stages, its like his common line of speech that made netizens more angry.
Other than the man who sells iced tea, there is a video of a senior comedian that also once offended while on stage by Miftah's mocking behavior but chose to remain silent until this went viral. In the stage, Miftah said that the woman is a slut in the context of joking, but people found it across the boundaries.
Miftah who has a special position from Mr. President as a special envoy for religion, harmony, and relationship must be forced to resign under the power of netizens. Though so many people that against him, Miftah still had many supporters and fanatical fans who kept defending him.
Many proved on social media that showing Miftah is a Fraud, one of them is when he claimed that he was a descendant of a great religious scholar. Meanwhile, the family of that scholar said that Miftah was not their relative at all.
Now Miftah still does some preaching and is still intact with his mocking and bronx character-ish, but the people who attend his speeches are his fanatic only.
Connection to Anime Culture
Another reason’s that making this 3 story connected is because of Tayuya, a Naruto (1999 Anime Series) character that can summon 3 giants. Those giant monsters had a similar physical appearance as 3 Gus.
One giant had no hand represent Agus Diffable, the other giant had his eyes taped represent Agus Blind, and the other giant had long hair which is Gus Miftah.Each of them represents the big sins, Agus Blind is sins of greed for money, Agus Disable is sins of lust, and Gus Miftah is sins of pride.
This making netizens of Indonesia believe that Indonesia is Konoha (Naruto’s village) was true all the time. Read more why Indonesia called as real life Konoha here.
People making fun of it since the uprising of conspiracy of main issue divert attention is raising in that time. Netizen asks, then who is the Tayuya (person who controls 3 giants) and who is Orochimaru (person who controls Tayuya)?
A satire question about conspiracy that government might divert attention from important issues to other news.
Conclusion
The “3 Gus” phenomenon is a unique example of how unrelated events can merge into a single viral narrative in the age of social media. Combining real-world controversies with pop culture references, it highlights the power of online communities in shaping public discourse in Indonesia.
Previouse post about case that happened in Indonesia
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