Ducati to Gratification: Ex-Deputy Manpower Minister Noel Sentenced to Prison
Former Deputy Minister for Manpower (Wamenaker) Immanuel Ebenezer Gerungan, known as Noel, has been sentenced to prison. Noel was imprisoned after being proven to have accepted a Ducati motorcycle and other gratuities. The panel of judges declared Noel guilty in a bribery and gratification case related to the processing of occupational safety and health (K3) certificates at the Ministry of Manpower. “Sentencing the Defendant to a prison term of 4 years and 6 months,” said chief judge Nur Sari Baktiana while reading the verdict at the Central Jakarta Corruption Court on Thursday (4/6/2026).
The judge also ordered Noel to pay a fine of Rp 200 million, subsidiary to 90 days of confinement. Additionally, the judge sentenced Noel to pay restitution of Rp 3,435,000,000. The judge stated that Noel’s assets could be confiscated and auctioned to cover this restitution. If the amount is insufficient, it will be replaced by 1 year of imprisonment. “If insufficient, a prison sentence of 1 year shall be imposed,” the judge declared.
Previously, Noel had faced a prosecution demand of 5 years’ imprisonment. Prosecutors were convinced of Noel’s guilt in the gratification and extortion case involving K3 certificate processing at the Ministry of Manpower. Prosecutors demanded a fine of Rp 250 million, subsidiary to 90 days of confinement, and restitution of Rp 4,435,000,000 minus Rp 3 billion already returned by Noel, leaving a remainder of Rp 1,435,000,000 subsidiary to 2 years’ confinement. Prosecutors argued Noel received a portion of the illicit non-technical funds totalling Rp 6.5 billion from the K3 certificate processing, provided by another civil servant at the ministry who is also a defendant in the case.
Noel stated that he accepted the verdict. He thanked the judges. “Thank you, Your Honour. I consider the sentence handed down by the Panel to be fitting for the crime I committed. Therefore, I accept it, Your Honour,” Noel said at the Central Jakarta Corruption Court on Thursday (4/6/2026). The prosecutor stated they needed time to consider the verdict. The judge noted that the 4.5-year prison sentence is not yet legally binding. “Although the Defendant accepts the verdict read today, the Public Prosecutor still has the right to consider their position, therefore this case is not yet legally binding,” the judge stated.
Accepted Gratification from Private Parties
The panel of judges ruled that former Deputy Minister Immanuel Ebenezer Gerungan had accepted gratification worth Rp 435 million from various private parties. The judges stated that Noel failed to report this gratification to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). “Considering all the evidence presented, no loan agreement documents, sales transaction proof, business accounting records, receipts, statements, financial reports, or other evidence were found that could convincingly prove that the receipt of Rp 435 million genuinely originated from a civil legal relationship as argued by the defendant,” said panel member Alfis Setyawan.
The judges were convinced the gratification received by Noel was related to his position as Deputy Minister for Manpower. “The defendant’s explanation merely stopped at a unilateral claim that obtained neither confirmation nor adequate evidentiary support from other legally valid evidence,” the judge said. The judge stated Noel consciously accepted the gratification while actively serving as Deputy Minister, and the receipts were made separately from different parties. “At the time the receipt occurred, the defendant was not an ordinary citizen, but a state official actively serving as Deputy Minister of Manpower. This position legally entails an obligation to maintain integrity, independence, objectivity, and freedom from all forms of conflict of interest. Therefore, every receipt of economic benefit from external parties must be assessed with a higher standard of prudence compared to receipts made by ordinary individuals,” the judge added. The Rp 435 million in gratification came from multiple sources, including payments from directors and commissioners of private companies between October 2024 and May 2025.
Proven to Have Received a Ducati
The panel of judges also found Noel proven to have received Rp 3 billion in cash and one dark blue Ducati Scrambler motorcycle. The judge stated that the money constituted non-technical funds from the processing of K3 certificates at the Ministry of Manpower. The judge said Noel requested Rp 3 billion using the coded term ‘3 metre’ from another Ministry official, Irvian Bobby Mahendro. Noel claimed he would use the money to resolve an investigation by the Attorney General’s Office. The judge detailed how Bobby subsequently delivered the funds.