Ibam's Sentence Increased in Chromebook Corruption Case
The judge’s sentence against former IT consultant at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology under Minister Nadiem Makarim, Ibrahim Arief alias Ibam, in the corruption case involving the procurement of Chromebook laptops and Chrome Device Management (CDM) has been increased. Ibam was sentenced to 5 years in prison, a fine of Rp 500 million and restitution of Rp 5 billion at the appeal stage.
At the first-instance court, Ibam was sentenced to 4 years in prison in the CDM laptop procurement corruption case that also implicated Nadiem Anwar Makarim. The judge declared Ibam guilty of violating Article 3 in conjunction with Article 18 of the Corruption Eradication Law in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code.
The sentencing hearing was held on Tuesday (13/5). In its ruling, the judge sentenced Ibam to 4 years in prison and a fine of Rp 500 million, with a subsidiary sentence of 120 days in confinement.
Ibam did not accept the verdict. His legal team filed an appeal. In this case, Nadiem and others were charged with corruption related to the procurement of Chromebook laptops during his tenure as Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology. The project allegedly caused state losses of Rp 2.1 trillion.
The following are the sentences for the defendants in this case:
Nadiem Makarim: 10 years in prison
Ibam: 5 years in prison
Former Director of Primary Education at the Ministry Sri Wahyuningsih: 4 years in prison
Former Director of Junior Secondary Education at the Ministry Mulyatsyah: 4.5 years in prison.
Ibam’s Sentence Increased
The Jakarta High Court subsequently increased Ibam’s sentence at the appeal stage. The appellate judges increased Ibam’s sentence from 4 years to 5 years in prison.
“Sentencing the Defendant Ibrahim alias Ibam therefore to 5 years in prison and a fine of Rp 500 million,” the judge said while reading the verdict at the Jakarta High Court, Cempaka Putih, Central Jakarta, on Monday (31/8).
If the fine is not paid, it will be replaced with 140 days in prison. Ibam was previously sentenced to 4 years in prison and was not ordered to pay restitution. Now, the judge has imposed restitution of Rp 5 billion on Ibam.
“Ordering the Defendant to pay restitution of Rp 5 billion,” the judge said.
If not paid, his assets will be seized and auctioned. The judge said that if Ibam’s assets are insufficient, the sentence will be replaced with 4 years in prison.
Judge’s Reasons for Imposing Rp 5 Billion Restitution
The Jakarta High Court judge explained the reasons why the appeal verdict against Ibam was heavier than the first-instance ruling. Ibam’s sentence now includes restitution.
“The panel of judges at the High Court is of the opinion that it must first be emphasised that the sentencing system in the Corruption Eradication Law does not only aim to impose corporal punishment on the perpetrator, but also aims to recover state losses arising from corruption,” said presiding judge Catur Iriantoro during Ibam’s appeal hearing.
The judge said that the additional penalty of restitution is an inseparable part of corruption eradication. The judge stated that the Corruption Law has regulated additional penalties in the form of restitution payments of up to the same amount as the assets obtained from corruption.
“This provision shows that the purpose of the lawmakers is not merely to inflict suffering on the perpetrator, but to ensure that every benefit obtained through corruption or every loss arising from such crime is restored to the state,” said Catur.
The judge stated that the additional penalty of restitution cannot be narrowly understood as a consequence only if the defendant personally enjoyed the proceeds of the crime.
The judge said that the restitution penalty must be assessed based on the relationship between the defendant’s actions, the economic benefits arising from the crime, and the portion of responsibility that can be legally attributed to each perpetrator based on the evidence.
“Therefore, the assessment of restitution must take into account the entire series of proven criminal acts and the actual contribution of each perpetrator to the occurrence of state losses,” he said.
The judge stated agreement with the first-instance panel at the Jakarta Corruption Court that Ibam was proven to have participated in corruption that resulted in state financial losses in the education digitalisation procurement in 2020 and 2021 at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology.
According to the judge, the losses were a direct result of the Chromebook procurement carried out according to each person’s role and introduction. “Thus there is a causal relationship between the defendant’s actions and the occurrence of state financial losses that are the object of recovery through the additional penalty mechanism,” the judge said.