BNI funds traced to overseas accounts

JAKARTA: The police are investigating the legality of a US$12 million worth of funds stashed in banks abroad and whether or not they are part of Rp 1.7 trillion ($186.81 million) embezzled from Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) in a lending scam last year.

"We're working with PPATK to check if the funds are legal or illegal. We suspect the money related to that which was taken from BNI," National Police Chief of Detective Comr. Gen. Suyitno Landung Sudjono told reporters on Friday.

Under Law No. 25/2003 against money laundering, the Financial Transaction and Report Analysis Center (PPATK) is a government- sanctioned agency tasked with collecting, recording and analyzing all suspicious transactions reported by financial service providers.

PPATK will report the findings to the police or the Attorney General's Office for further follow up. --JP