KPK Appeals 2-Year Sentence of Riau Governor Abdul Wahid
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has officially filed an appeal against the two-year prison sentence for suspended Riau Governor Abdul Wahid. The appeal was lodged against the verdicts of three defendants convicted in this case.
KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo confirmed that the team of public prosecutors filed the legal appeal with the Riau High Court on Tuesday (4/8). The appeal was submitted for the three defendants: suspended Riau Governor Abdul Wahid, Head of the Riau Province Public Works and Spatial Planning (PUPR) Office Muh Arif Setiawan, and Riau Governor’s Expert Staff Dani M Nursalam. Budi stated that the appeal is the prerogative of the KPK prosecutors.
‘This legal step also reflects the KPK’s commitment to ensuring the proper application of the law and the realisation of a sense of justice in handling corruption cases,’ he said.
The KPK prosecution team will subsequently prepare a memorandum of appeal as the basis for the petition to the High Court. The appeal was filed following a review that had been conducted.
‘The KPK respects the entire ongoing judicial process and believes that the legal remedy mechanism is part of the criminal justice system to guarantee the achievement of legal certainty, justice, and legal benefit in eradicating corruption,’ he added.
Abdul Wahid was sentenced to two years in prison in a case involving illicit levies after being caught in a KPK sting operation in early November 2025. This sentence was significantly lighter than the prosecutors’ initial demand of eight years and six months made in early July.
Arief Setiawan and Dani Nurssalam were also sentenced to two years in prison. Arief was additionally ordered to pay a fine of Rp 200 million, which will be replaced by 80 days of confinement if unpaid. He is also required to pay restitution of over Rp 1 billion, minus the evidence already seized by the KPK.
According to detikSumut, Abdul Wahid stated on Friday (31/7) that there were no mitigating considerations in the verdict read by the Pekanbaru Corruption Court judges. Abdul Wahid claimed his case was fabricated and declared he would pursue an appeal.
‘We all heard the judge’s decision. However, from the judge’s decision, there were no mitigating considerations for me,’ Abdul Wahid said after the trial.
‘The facts of the trial were ignored, therefore I declare an appeal to the next level. Hopefully, I will get justice and I will continue to seek justice. I feel innocent in this matter and I have never done it. But it is truly fabricated, I feel that this is full of fabrication,’ Wahid said.