Former BI directors put under house arrest

JAKARTA (JP): Two suspects in the misuse of central bank liquidity support funds have left their cells after the Attorney General's Office decided to place them under house arrest, an official said on Monday.

Attorney General's Office spokesman Muljohardjo said that former Bank Indonesia directors Heru Supraptomo and Hendri Budiyanto were released on Friday at 8 p.m. because prosecutors had finished investigating the allegations against them

Other suspects in the case, Kaharudin Ongko, former vice president of Bank Umum Nasional, Samadikun Hartono, a former commissioner of Bank Modern, and David Nusa Wijaya, a former director of Bank Umum Sertivia had earlier also been released.

They were allegedly involved in the misuse of some Rp 138.4 trillion of the liquidity support (BLBI) funds extended to 48 ailing banks during the economic crisis between 1997 and 1999.

The Attorney General's Office is under fire for its poor performance in handling the liquidity support funds scandal.

So far, the office has only been able to send one former banker to court.

Hendrawan Haryono, the former loans director of Bank Aspac, is facing a possible five-year jail term for allegedly misusing Rp 538 billion in state funds channeled to his bank.

Muljohardjo also denied reports that President Abdurrahman Wahid had assigned his office, under new Attorney General Baharuddin Lopa, the task of investigating corruption allegations against businessman Taufik Kiemas, who is the husband of Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

"This office is independent. Besides, we have not received any reports about Taufik Kiemas," he was quoted by detik.com as saying.

The President will install Lopa, a former Minister of Justice, as the new Attorney General replacing Marzuki Darusman on Tuesday.