Attorney General's Office reminds former Deputy Head of BGN of limits on pretrial motions
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Attorney General’s Office has reminded former Deputy Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) Lodewyk Pusung of the limits on filing pretrial motions under the new Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP).
Head of the Attorney General’s Office Legal Information Centre Anang Supriatna said Article 160 paragraph (3) of Law Number 20 of 2025 concerning the KUHAP states that a request regarding the legality of coercive measures may only be submitted once for the same matter.
“Because this is Lodewyk’s third pretrial motion, the prosecution team will first carefully examine the application, particularly whether the object, basis, coercive measures, and substance being challenged are the same as the previous applications,” Anang told reporters in Jakarta on Saturday.
Regarding the merits of the case, Anang said the Attorney General’s Office remains confident that all investigative actions and coercive measures were based on sufficient evidence and carried out in accordance with procedural law.
Nevertheless, he respects the filing of a pretrial motion as a legal right of the suspect guaranteed by the KUHAP.
“Therefore, please exercise that right in accordance with the applicable legal mechanism, and the Attorney General’s Office as the Respondent will certainly appear and provide answers in court,” he said.
The Central Jakarta District Court did not accept Lodewyk’s pretrial motion regarding the alleged corruption case in the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme.
“Granting the Respondent’s (Attorney General’s Office) exception regarding jurisdiction,” said Judge Firman at the pretrial ruling hearing at the Central Jakarta District Court on Monday (24/8).
Accordingly, Judge Firman ruled not to assess the legality of the arrest, search, seizure, suspect designation, or detention of Lodewyk.
Because the pretrial motion at the Central Jakarta District Court was not accepted, Lodewyk again filed a pretrial motion at the South Jakarta District Court.
Before going to the Central Jakarta District Court, the former Deputy Head of BGN had also filed a pretrial motion at the South Jakarta District Court, which was likewise not accepted for the same reason.
He and other suspects are alleged to have inflated the procurement prices of several goods at the BGN, including 21,801 electric motorcycles with a total procurement value of Rp1.035 trillion.
The funds were paid to PT YAT, which did not meet the requirements as a vendor because it had no active dealership or workshop, and there was a mark-up. The price inflation caused waste and losses to state finances.
For his actions, Lodewyk is charged with violating Article 603 in conjunction with Article 20 letter a or c of Law Number 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 18 of Law Number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Corruption as amended and supplemented by Law Number 20 of 2001.
Besides Lodewyk, four other suspects have been named in the case, namely former Head of BGN Dadan Hindayana, former Deputy Head of BGN for Nutrition Fulfilment Operations Sony Sonjaya, Asep Yusuf Soemantri, and Commissioner of PT Yasa Artha Trimanunggal (YAT) Andri Mulyono.