Court Rules State Losses in Chromebook Procurement Case Reach Rp1.56 Trillion

The Jakarta Corruption Court has declared that state financial losses in the alleged corruption case surrounding the procurement of Chromebook laptops reached Rp1.56 trillion, according to an audit by the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP). The losses resulted from the difference between the net payment made and the fair value of the laptops that should have been paid by the state. The procurement involved 1,199,327 Chromebook units during the 2020 to 2022 fiscal years. In 2021, state losses amounted to Rp544.59 billion from the procurement of 494,647 units, with a net payment of approximately Rp2.56 trillion against a fair value of around Rp2.01 trillion. In 2022, losses reached Rp895.3 billion from 597,640 units, with a net payment of roughly Rp3 trillion compared to a fair value of about Rp2.1 trillion. The panel of judges deemed the BPKP audit report valid, reliable, and methodologically sound, stating the loss was real, definite, and had a direct causal link to the abuse of authority by the defendant. In addition to a prison sentence, the court imposed a fine of Rp1 billion, with a 190-day prison term in default, and ordered the defendant to pay restitution of Rp809.59 billion, with a five-year prison term in default. The court found that the defendant received Rp809.59 billion from PT Aplikasi Karya Anak Bangsa (PT AKAB) through PT Gojek Indonesia, with most of PT AKAB’s funds originating from a Google investment worth 786.99 million US dollars. The acts were committed with three other defendants already sentenced in separate cases, while another individual remains a fugitive.