Irvian Bobby Set to Become Crown Witness, Noel Ebenezer: Fellow Defendants Should Not Weigh Each Other Down

Jakarta - Former Deputy Minister of Manpower Immanuel Ebenezer, alias Noel, hopes that fellow defendants in the alleged corruption case of extortion in the management of K3 certificates will not burden one another. Noel expressed this in response to one of the defendants, the Coordinator for Institutional and Personnel Affairs of K3 at the Ministry of Manpower for 2022-2025, Irvian Bobby Mahendro, who has offered himself as a crown witness. “Certainly, we hope that they don’t end up burdening each other; that’s not good,” Noel said when providing testimony after the trial at the Jakarta Corruption Court, Thursday (16/4/2026). Noel stated that all defendants have already endured a heavy legal process. He considered it highly illogical for the defendants to burden one another. Noel admitted to sharing a cell with Bobby but only learned of Bobby’s application to become a crown witness during today’s trial. In a separate encounter, Bobby’s camp emphasised that their step to apply as a crown witness is not intended to aggravate the punishment of other defendants. “If another defendant says not to attack fellow defendants, that’s not our direction,” Bobby’s legal adviser, Hervan Dewantara, said when met outside the courtroom. Furthermore, they hope that Bobby will receive the lightest possible sentence after becoming a crown witness for all defendants. Previously reported, Irvian Bobby Mahendro has applied to become a crown witness. This application is awaiting consideration from the Chief Judge of the Central Jakarta District Court. During the trial, Presiding Judge Nur Sari Baktiana confirmed the application to Bobby. “Is it true that you are applying to become a crown witness?” asked Presiding Judge Nur Sari Baktiana during the trial at the Jakarta Corruption Court, Thursday (16/4/2026).