Judges Acquit Three NTB Council Members in Graft Case, Prosecutors Vow to Fight On

Prosecutors have confirmed they will not stand idly by after a panel of judges at the Mataram Corruption Court acquitted three members of the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) in a gratuity case involving ‘ghost money’ within the NTB DPRD. Although the acquittal cannot be appealed through cassation under the new Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP), the prosecution stressed it is still examining other legal avenues.

Public prosecutor Hendarsyah Yusuf Permana stated that his office respects the panel of judges’ decision. However, the verdict will first be reported to superiors to determine the next steps. ‘We respect whatever decision the Mataram Corruption Court panel of judges makes. Regarding the acquittal, we will certainly take steps. We will first report the results of this trial to our leadership. We will discuss it internally first,’ Hendarsyah said after the verdict hearing at the Mataram Corruption Court on Wednesday (5/8/2026).

The three defendants are Indra Jaya Usman, also known as IJU, Muhammad Nashib Ikroman, also known as Acip, and Hamdan Kasim. Hendarsyah said the acquittal would not simply be the end of the matter, even though Article 299 paragraph (2) of Law Number 20 of 2025 concerning the Criminal Procedure Code stipulates that an acquittal cannot be appealed through cassation. ‘We all know there is a new KUHAP now. There is one clause, namely Article 299 of the new KUHAP, which states that an acquittal cannot be appealed. But it is not that simple. We will certainly take certain steps,’ he said.

Hendarsyah noted that the provisions in the KUHAP do not rule out the possibility of other legal remedies. According to him, such a mechanism has been pursued by public prosecutors in other cases. ‘For example, in one of the courts at the DKI Jakarta High Court. The public prosecutor filed an appeal, but it was rejected. However, a verzet was filed, and that was accepted. But this is not yet fixed; we will report first,’ he stated.

Earlier, the panel of judges at the Mataram Corruption Court, chaired by Dewi Santini with members Gede Trisnajaya Susila and Irawan Ismail, declared that the three defendants were not proven to have committed corruption as charged by the public prosecutor. ‘To adjudicate, to declare that the defendants are not legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing corruption jointly as per the primary, subsidiary, and more subsidiary charges of the public prosecutor,’ the verdict read on Wednesday evening (5/8/2026). The judges ordered the defendants’ rights, capabilities, standing, dignity, and honour to be restored.