Five officials to be tried for violating banking laws

Five officials to be tried for violating banking laws

JAKARTA (JP): Five officials from two private banks closed
down by the government last year are to be brought to trial for
allegedly violating banking laws, an officer said yesterday.

Col. Made Mangku Pastika, who heads the National Police
economic crime unit, said the accused were Ahmad Fedbi Fadhilla
and Candra Wijaya, respectively the chief commissioner and
operational director of Bank Citrahasta Dhanamanunggal; and Bank
Dwipa Semesta executives Bambang Samijono and Wiyono Karya
Wagena, and Benny Ondang, who owns the latter bank.

Dossiers on the five have been submitted to the prosecutor's
office, Made said.

He said that Bambang had fled Jakarta and was now on the
police most wanted persons list, but he did not reveal whether
any of the other suspects were in police custody.

The two banks are among nine currently under police
investigation at the request of Bank Indonesia, the central bank.

The other banks are Sejahtera Bank Umum, Bank Harapan Sentosa,
South East Asia Bank, Bank Pacific, Anrico Bank, Bank Kosagraha
Semesta and Bank Pinaesaan.

Made said executives of the nine banks had breached the legal
lending limit and did not report this fact to accounting staff,
in direct violation of Law No.7/1992 on banking.

The violation carries a maximum penalty of six years in jail
and a fine of Rp 6 billion.

Bank Indonesia director Achjar Iljas said on Wednesday that
loans made by the banks to their owners and affiliated companies
had exceeded the maximum limit set by the central bank.

He said the central bank filed cases against four of the banks
with police in May. This was followed up with a further two in
June and three more in July.

The government liquidated the banks in early November last
year as part of efforts to restructure the ailing banking sector.
(ivy)