Bambang questioned in bank scam

JAKARTA (JP): Bambang Trihatmodjo, a son of former president Soeharto, was questioned by police on Thursday night over allegations of a scam at his Bank Andromeda, which was closed down by the government last November for mismanagement.

An officer at the National Police headquarters confirmed that Bambang, the owner of the widely diversified Bimantara Group, was "being interrogated as a suspect".

A few hours earlier, the National Police said they had issued arrest warrants for 10 Andromeda commissioners and directors.

It was not immediately clear whether Bambang had been picked up by the police following the arrest warrants or had gone to the National Police headquarters of his own accord.

Maj. Gen. Da'i Bachtiar, the National Police chief detective, refused to confirm or deny Bambang's status. "I have no statement on the matter as of now," Da'i said on Thursday night.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar Sianipar told reporters at his office earlier that the warrants were issued because the 10 suspects had ignored three consecutive summonses by the police to help with the investigation.

"So today we issued the arrest warrants," Togar told reporters in his office on Thursday afternoon.

"We believe they are still here (in the country) and we have put their names on the immigration office's list of people barred from traveling overseas," he said.

Police sources said that besides Bambang, an arrest warrant was issued for tycoon Prajogo Pangestu, who was vice president of Bank Andromeda's board of commissioners.

The others were for Henry Pribadi, Peter F. Gontha, Jusran and Junanda P. Syarfuan who all sat on the board of commissioners, and president director Nico Mailangkay and other members of the board of directors Isman Dito, Uthan A. Sadikin and Megawaty W. Liem.

Andromeda is one of 21 banks that has been referred to the police by Bank Indonesia regarding the possible violation of banking laws.

The bank was closed down by the government in November along with 15 others because of allegations that they had violated the rule limiting lending to their own business groups.

Bambang was allowed to acquire another bank after he vehemently protested the government's decision to close Bank Andromeda. He said he had paid back the loans Bank Andromeda issued to his Bimantara Group.

The police's investigations into these liquidated banks are mostly based on suspicions that they breached the legal lending limit and failed to report this to the authorities, thereby violating the 1992 Banking Law.

If found guilty, the suspects face a maximum sentence of six years imprisonment and a Rp 6 billion (US$550,000) fine.

So far, two of the investigated banks have been sent to the court for prosecution: Bank Dwipa Semesta and Bank Citrahasta Dhanamanunggal.

Police are in the final stages of investigating seven further banks: Sejahtera Bank Umum (SBU), Bank Harapan Sentosa (BHS), South East Asia Bank (SEAB), Bank Pasific, Bank Anrico, Bank Kosa Graha and Bank Pinaesaan. They have already named 24 suspects from these banks.

Togar said police have also named Mohammad "Bob" Hasan, the chief commissioner of Bank Umum Nasional, Bank Modern chief commissioner Samadikun Hartono and BDNI president Sjamsul Nursalim as suspects in investigation of these banks, which were closed down by the government last month after receiving a heavy injection of funds from the central bank.

Police sources said Hasan, a Soeharto crony, would be questioned by the police on Monday. (edt)