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)