Luthfi joined the police forces in 1989 upon graduating from college. He began his career with the rank of police second inspector upon completing a brief police preparatory course. He was assigned at the central police headquarters for two years before receiving a promotion to the rank of police first inspector. He was then rotated to the police provost service, religious service, and the intelligence services, serving in various roles and positions. ^[1]

In 2008, Luthfi was appointed as the police chief of the Batang Regency in Central Java with the rank of adjunct chief commissioner. During his tenure, Luthfi was confronted with the hardline Islamic Defenders Front in the region, who planned to do their own unauthorized sweeping due to their distrust in the police. ^[2] Luthfi also faced a bus accident which resulted in the death of fifteen passengers ^[3] and the death of an unidentified woman. ^[4]

After two years serving in Batang, Luthfi was appointed as the deputy intelligence director of the Central Java Police. ^[5] A year later, on 11 April 2011, Luthfi was installed as the deputy police chief of Surakarta. ^[6] During this period, Luthfi maintained relations with Surakarta's mayor, Joko Widodo, who later become the president of Indonesia. Luthfi's relations with Joko Widodo prompted experts to identify him as part of the Solo Gang, a group of Indonesian police and military active in Surakarta during Widodo's mayoralty who were promoted into high-ranking positions during Widodo's presidency. Luthfi served as deputy to two different police chiefs: Nana Sudjana [ id] and Listyo Sigit Prabowo. ^[7]

Luthfi received a promotion to the rank of chief commissioner at the end of his tenure as deputy police chief. He was reassigned to the Profession and Security Division and the Police Education and Training Institute. ^[1] In February 2015, Luthfi returned to Surakarta along with his appointment as the police chief of Surakarta. ^[8]