Amsal Sitepu Case: Expert Says Prosecutors Fail to Understand Professional Services Transactions
Criminal law lecturer at Trisakti University, Azmi Syahputra, has highlighted the alleged corruption case concerning the production of a village profile video in Karo Regency, which has ensnared videographer Amsal Christy Sitepu. Azmi views this case as a broad illustration of the gap between rigid bureaucratic procedures and the realities of Indonesia’s creative industry.
Ahead of the verdict hearing scheduled for 1 April 2026, Azmi reminds the panel of judges to prioritise substantive justice. According to him, the prosecutors’ allegations of budget mark-ups demonstrate a failure to differentiate between legitimate professional services transactions and malicious corrupt intent.
“This constitutes a denial of intellectual value. The public prosecutors have failed to distinguish between professional services transactions and malicious corrupt intent. Such characteristics in law enforcement create a bad precedent for professional workers in this country,” Azmi stated in his comments on Monday (30/3/2026).
Azmi criticises the method of auditing state losses, which calculates creative components such as concepts, ideas, editing processes, and dubbing at a value of “zero rupiah”. He considers this logic contradictory because the video product is tangible, exists, and has been used by the village authorities.
“If the prosecutors truly calculate a creator’s professional work at zero value, that is not only illogical from a business perspective but also a form of belittling the creative profession. A video does not emerge from a vacuum; there is imagination, rented equipment, time, and skills honed over years,” he emphasised.
According to Azmi, evaluating intellectual works solely based on the price of physical materials is a major mistake. For him, the essence of creative services lies in the effort and specific expertise possessed by an individual.
Azmi encourages the panel of judges not to fixate only on the text of the law or audit figures that do not touch the realities of professional performance. He hopes the judges’ decision will embody justice that shelters the living legal values in society.
He also advises the judges to refer to the spirit of the new Criminal Code, which emphasises corrective and rehabilitative justice, as well as protecting the creative ecosystem from being damaged by superficial understandings.
“The panel of judges must dare to apply the spirit of modern law. Judges must act actively and meticulously to correct audit errors that ignore the human and intellectual values of the nation’s creativity. The law must not lose its conscience,” Azmi concluded.
In this case, Amsal is demanded a two-year prison sentence, a fine of Rp50 million, and an obligation to repay state losses of Rp202 million. He is charged under Article 3 in conjunction with Article 18 of Law No. 31 of 1999 as amended by Law No. 20 of 2001 on the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Corruption.