Holding 3 Positions: The Corruption Method of Surabaya Zoo's Ex-President Director

The East Java High Prosecutor’s Office (Kejati Jatim) has uncovered the method allegedly used by the former President Director of the Surabaya Zoo Regional Company (PD TS KBS), Choirul Anwar (CA), in a suspected corruption case. Assistant for Special Crimes (Aspidsus) at the East Java Prosecutor’s Office, I Gede Punia Atmaja, stated that Choirul held three different positions concurrently between 2016 and 2024, which allegedly allowed him to freely commit budget corruption, including marking up animal feed budgets, resulting in state losses of Rp10.2 billion. Choirul not only served as President Director but also concurrently held the positions of Operational Director and Finance Director of PD TS KBS. “Besides that, he also served as Operational Director and then Finance Director. So, he held multiple positions. Automatically, the money was simply taken, then spent, and then the accountability report was created to make it appear legitimate. But in reality, the accountability report contained several false expenditures,” Gede said at the East Java High Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday (22/7). Gede explained that holding multiple positions allowed Choirul to take company money and sign the budget expenditure accountability documents himself, without any control mechanism from other parties. “Yes, because the money [allegedly used freely by CA] is like I said earlier, at the same time he served as Operational Director and Finance Director,” he stated. One of the methods Choirul employed through his concurrent authority, Gede said, was marking up the animal feed budget. The amount of feed actually given to the animals was reduced, but the accountability report was manipulated to make it appear as if the budget was used as intended. “Because one of the methods was regarding animal feed. The feed was reduced. The accountability report was fabricated to show it was there, but it was actually marked up,” he said. Gede stated that this method also contributed to the poor maintenance of the Surabaya Zoo, even impacting the health of the animals, some of which died. “Besides causing state financial losses, this also prevented the beloved Surabaya Zoo from developing because the financial management resulted in poorly maintained, dirty, and damaged facilities, and the animals were also affected, becoming unhealthy, thin, prone to death, and lacking proper care,” he said. Gede said Choirul also used company budget funds for fictitious expenses and personal interests. This was done by instructing his staff to disburse budget funds and create accountability reports to make it appear as if the funds were genuinely used for operational activities. “This was done by instructing witnesses, financial staff in the Accounting and Finance Department, to disburse budget funds and ordering them to create accountability reports for the PD TS KBS budget expenditure to make it seem as if the money was truly used for the company’s operational activities,” he said. Gede added that in 2023 to 2024, these improper company expenditures were also approved by MN as the Finance Director. As a result of this series of methods, the state is suspected to have suffered financial losses of approximately Rp10.2 billion based on preliminary calculations. “These actions have resulted in state financial losses, specifically for PD TS KBS, of approximately Rp10,209,664,735.60. This is based on the results of a preliminary calculation with the East Java Province BPKP,” he said. Of the total state losses, Gede stated that around Rp7.4 billion was used by Choirul for personal interests. However, he did not detail the use of these funds. “Yes, from the Rp10.2 billion, around Rp7.4 billion was used for personal interests. We will convey the details later, but we have already obtained the evidence and traced it, and it was indeed used for personal interests,” he said. Gede mentioned that during the investigation and inquiry, the East Java High Prosecutor’s Office had examined 22 witnesses. His party is currently further investigating the suspected involvement of other parties in this case. “Of course, we are currently conducting an in-depth investigation. Corruption is unlikely to be committed by one person alone. We will update you all later,” he said. Gede revealed that this case originated from public reports, including from the City Government and the Mayor of Surabaya. “It was actually a public report. Yes. So, there were public reports from the City Government and the Mayor,” he continued. Gede acknowledged that the investigation process took a long time because it covered a nine-year period. “Oh, certainly. So, we have been conducting examinations from 2017 for this 2024 case. It covers 2016 to 2024. So, for now, that’s the update, and we will provide more later,” he said. CA is currently detained at the Surabaya Class I Detention Centre, East Java High Prosecutor’s Office branch, for 20 days, starting from 21 July 2026 to 9 August 2026. Meanwhile, CA’s legal counsel, Edward Dewaruci, stated that his party respects the ongoing legal process and considers the determination of his client as a suspect to be in accordance with procedure. “The process has been going on for a long time. I am confident that the prosecutor’s office has carried out the stages according to the procedural law. We will see how it develops later for the suspect’s defence materials,” Edward said. Edward stated that his party has not seen any formal defects in the suspect determination process, so a pre-trial motion is not a primary consideration. “A pre-trial concerns procedural errors. So far, all the documents have been fulfilled. So, there seems to be no issue with the formal law,” he said.