Mens Rea Proof Standards in Electronic Fraud Crimes in Indonesia

Abstract

The development of information technology has encouraged the increase in electronic fraud crimes with different characteristics from conventional fraud, especially in the aspect of proving  the mens rea element  as the basis for criminal liability. This research aims to analyze the position  of mens rea in Indonesian criminal law, examine the problems of proof in electronic fraud cases, and formulate a construction of evidentiary standards that are more adaptive to the development of digital technology. The research uses normative legal research methods with laws and regulations, conceptual, and case approaches. Legal materials are analyzed qualitatively through systematic and prescriptive interpretation of laws and regulations, doctrines, and court decisions. The results of the study show that Indonesia's positive law does not yet have normative parameters that specifically regulate the standard of proof of mens rea in the crime of electronic fraud, so the assessment still depends on the judge's interpretation of the available evidence. This condition has the potential to cause disparities in verdicts and reduce legal certainty. This study offers a reconstruction of evidentiary standards through  the digital behavioural indicators approach, namely the assessment of intentional elements based on the digital behavior patterns of perpetrators built from the integration of electronic evidence, digital forensic results, expert testimony, and trial facts. This approach is expected to strengthen the consistency of evidence, increase legal certainty, and still ensure the protection of the rights of defendants in the Indonesian criminal justice system.