Judges Urge AGO to Investigate Nadiem's Rp4.87 Trillion Wealth Increase via Money Laundering

The panel of judges at the Corruption Court in the Central Jakarta District Court has requested the Attorney General’s Office to investigate the wealth increase of Nadiem Anwar Makarim related to the Chromebook case, amounting to Rp4.87 trillion, through a money laundering mechanism. Judge member Eryusman stated that the public prosecutor’s request regarding Nadiem’s wealth increase could not be granted as a compensatory payment in the current case, as proposed in the sentencing demand. “The request for a compensatory payment of Rp4.87 trillion cannot be granted in the a quo case, not because the existence of disproportionate wealth is denied, but because it was pursued through the incorrect legal channel,” Eryusman said while reading the legal considerations during the sentencing hearing at the Central Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday. In the prosecutor’s sentencing demand, Nadiem was requested to be sentenced to an additional penalty of paying a total compensatory sum of Rp5.67 trillion, comprising Rp809.59 billion and Rp4.87 trillion. Judge Eryusman noted that further tracing of the assets in question through a money laundering investigation could be conducted with the predicate crime under Article 3 of the Corruption Eradication Law, which has been proven as per the verdict in Nadiem’s case. He revealed that the Rp4.87 trillion was argued as a disproportionate increase in wealth based on the 2022 State Officials’ Wealth Report and the reversed burden of proof mechanism under Articles 37 and 37a of the Corruption Law. The panel of judges understands the spirit of maximising state financial recovery underlying the AGO’s actions, he said. “However, that spirit must operate within the corridors of the principle of legality, legal certainty, and proportionality,” Eryusman stated. In addition to a prison sentence, the Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology for the 2019–2024 period was also sentenced to a fine of Rp1 billion, subsidiary to 190 days of imprisonment, and a compensatory payment of Rp809.59 billion, subsidiary to 5 years of imprisonment. The compensatory payment was imposed after Nadiem was proven to have received Rp809.59 billion originating from PT Aplikasi Karya Anak Bangsa through PT Gojek Indonesia. It was mentioned that a large portion of PT AKAB’s funds came from a Google investment worth 786.99 million US dollars. In this case, Nadiem was proven to have abused his authority, causing state financial losses of Rp1.56 trillion. The corruption was allegedly carried out, among other things, by implementing the procurement of information and communication technology-based learning facilities in the form of Chromebook laptops and CDM for the 2020, 2021, and 2022 fiscal years, which did not comply with procurement planning and principles. The actions of the founder of a technology company were declared to have been carried out together with three other defendants who have been sentenced in separate trials, namely Ibrahim Arief alias Ibam, Mulyatsyah, and Sri Wahyuningsih, as well as Jurist Tan, who remains at large. Thus, the former education minister was proven to have violated the criminal provisions stipulated in Article 3 in conjunction with Article 18 of Law Number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Corruption, as amended and supplemented by Law Number 20 of 2001, in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) 1st of the Criminal Code.