Customs Bribery Trial: Witness Admits Renting Apartment to Store Asset Safe

A hearing in the customs bribery case against PT Blueray Cargo owner John Field resumed at the Central Jakarta Corruption Court on Friday, revealing the use of luxury apartments in the Kelapa Gading area as a safe house to conceal the proceeds of crime. Witness Antonius Sidauruk, a confidant of suspect Orlando Hamonangan Sianipar, the Head of the Customs Intelligence Section, admitted he was ordered to rent apartment units in his own name. Public Prosecutor confirmed the rental of units at the Santa Monica Bay and Hawaiian Bay apartments within the Mall of Indonesia complex. “It was March, sir,” Antonius replied when the prosecutor asked about the start of the rental at Santa Monica Bay. Based on evidence presented in court, the unit is strongly suspected to have functioned as a storage facility for assets. The prosecutor read out the official examination report detailing the relocation of a Krisbow-branded safe from Orlando’s private residence to the apartment using an online transport service. “Mr Orlando asked me to collect a safe from his house and move it to this apartment using Grab. That is correct, sir,” Antonius admitted before the panel of judges led by Brelly Yuniar Dien. During the trial, the prosecutor presented photographic evidence from a Corruption Eradication Commission search showing piles of foreign currency cash and precious metals inside the safe. Antonius confirmed the findings but claimed he was not involved in filling the safe. The case has implicated several senior Customs and Excise officials, including former Director of Enforcement and Investigation, Rizal, and the Head of the Intelligence Sub-Directorate, Sisprian Subiaksono. John Field, along with two other defendants, Andri and Dedy Kurniawan, are accused of paying bribes to facilitate PT Blueray Cargo’s import documentation to avoid customs intelligence inspections. The total bribes allegedly amounted to Rp61,301,939,000 in rupiah equivalent to Singapore dollars, along with entertainment and luxury goods worth Rp1.84 billion. The trial will continue to investigate the flow of funds and the involvement of other parties in this bribery scandal.