Illegal Gold Scandal and Money Laundering Worth Rp 25.9 Trillion: Police Establish Three Suspects
JAKARTA — Investigators from the Directorate for Economic and Special Crime Offences (Dittipideksus) of the Indonesian National Police’s Criminal Investigation Bureau have uncovered a case involving the receipt and trafficking of gold sourced from unlicensed mining operations (PETI), accompanied by money laundering offences (TPPU).
The value of transactions from these illegal practices is alleged to have reached Rp 25.9 trillion over the period from 2019 to 2025.
Brigadier General Ade Safri Simanjuntak, Director of the Directorate for Economic and Special Crime Offences at the Criminal Investigation Bureau, stated that the exposure of this case originated from an analysis of suspicious transactions reported by the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK).
“This case disclosure is based on the PPATK’s analytical report regarding suspicious transactions in domestic gold trading,” said Ade in his statement on Friday, 13 March 2026.
The activity was uncovered in several regions, including West Kalimantan and West Papua. Several related cases have previously been processed through the courts and have obtained final judicial verdicts at the District Courts in Pontianak and Manokwari.
Based on preliminary investigation results, the accumulated transactions of gold sales and purchases alleged to originate from illegal mines between 2019 and 2025 reached Rp 25.9 trillion. These transactions included purchases of gold from illegal mines and subsequent sales to several gold refining and export companies.
During the investigation, authorities conducted initial searches at five locations on 19–20 February 2026, comprising two locations in Nganjuk Regency and three locations in Surabaya, East Java.
Evidence seized included gold jewellery weighing 8.16 kilograms, gold bars weighing approximately 51.3 kilograms estimated to be worth approximately Rp 150 billion, and cash totalling Rp 7.13 billion, consisting of Rp 6.17 billion and 60,000 United States dollars.
Additionally, investigators gathered various other evidence including witness statements, expert statements, documents, leads, and electronic evidence.
Based on a case conference held on 27 February 2026, investigators formally established three individuals as suspects: TW, DW, and BSW.
Ade stated that in handling this case, investigators not only prosecuted the offenders with charges of receiving and trafficking illegal gold, but also applied a money laundering offence approach. The approach utilised was the concept of “semi-standalone money laundering”, which permits enforcement action against money laundering offences even though the underlying predicate offence has not yet been proven in court.
The three companies involved are PT Simba Jaya Utama, PT Indah Golden Signature, and PT Suka Jadi Logam, located in Surabaya and Sidoarjo Regency.
“These three companies were searched in order to strengthen evidence of the gold refining process and the trading of illegal gold involving the suspects,” said Ade.