Ex-councillor named suspect of Rp 1b fraud case

Ex-councillor named suspect of Rp 1b fraud case

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Jakarta Police named former City Council chairman Agung Imam
Sumanto a suspect on Thursday for swindling Rp 1 billion
(US$108,696) from four business partners.

The police are scheduled to question Agung on Friday, who was
elected as a councillor from the Indonesian Democratic Party of
Struggle (PDI-P) for the 1999-2004 period.

"We already sent the first summons for questioning," the city
police detectives chief Sr. Comr. Mathius Salempang told
reporters.

Agung could be charged under Article 378 of the Criminal Code
on fraud. The article carries a maximum sentence of four years
imprisonment.

City police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani had said on Wednesday
when attending the swearing-in ceremony of the city's new
councillors that the police would summons him immediately because
Agung was no longer a councillor and therefore the police would
not need approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs to question
him.

Agung is also a member of the campaign team for Megawati
Soekarnoputri, in her bid for a full term. He arrived at the city
police headquarters on Thursday for the gathering of the two
presidential candidates' campaign teams.

In contrast to his earlier denials, Agung was willing to talk
to the press on Thursday.

"A friend of mine asked me to help four businessman on public
transportation matter. I said I would try. I did. But since my
efforts (to help them) failed, what can I say?" he said.

Agung admitted that he took the Rp 1 billion, but denied that
he misused it for his own interests.

"The money was used for the (presidential election) campaign.
One of the businesspeople is also a PDI-P member. He knew where
the money went," he said, adding he would be ready for the
questioning.

Agung had been reported to the police on July 26 by Etty
Mustam, a 60-year-old public transportation businesswoman.

Local media have reported that Etty was one of the four
businesspeople who had given Agung Rp 1 billion in cash in 2003.
They had asked for Agung's help in facilitating licenses for
their 200 public minivans.

The reports said that Agung had requested Rp 5 million
commission for each of the minivans.

The four businesspeople paid the money gradually. One of them
gave some hundred million rupiah to Agung through his second
wife, Ita Nurhayati.

But even though Agung's tenure as a councillor has already
ended, the four businesspeople have not hear any news on the fate
of the expected licenses of their public minivans.

Salempang said before the police named Agung a suspect, they
had questioned five witnesses: the four businesspeople and
Agung's second wife.