KPK: BNPB Emergency Funds Case Involves Conflict of Interest and Bribery
Sleman, Yogyakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) says the alleged corruption case involving emergency funds at the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) concerns conflict of interest and bribery.
“There are two strands. The first uses Article 12(i), while the second involves bribery provisions,” KPK Chairman Setyo Budiyanto said in Sleman, Special Region of Yogyakarta, on Wednesday.
The provision cited by Setyo is Article 12(i) of Law No. 31 of 1999 on the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Corruption, as amended by Law No. 20 of 2001. It covers alleged conflicts of interest.
He said the KPK had not charged anyone under Articles 2 and 3 of the anti-corruption law in this case, although those provisions were discussed during the case review to determine the legal status of people detained in the sting operation.
“Articles 2 and 3? Those were among the matters discussed yesterday,” he said.
However, Setyo said the KPK had not ruled out bringing charges under those articles later.
“It remains possible if further developments, new information or the involvement of other parties is found,” he said.
The KPK previously confirmed that it conducted a sting operation at the BNPB on 13 October 2026.
The operation resulted in the arrest of 14 people, including BNPB Chief Secretary Rustian and several private-sector figures. Rustian, however, was not named as a suspect in the alleged procurement corruption case, in which the budget is believed to have come from emergency funds allocated for disaster response.
On 14 October 2026, the KPK named five people as suspects in the case.
They include Bima Setiawan, the younger brother of BNPB Chief Suharyanto, a lieutenant general in the Indonesian Army, and an expert adviser to the chief. The other four, according to information gathered, are Gabriel Purwaka Sigit, head of the BNPB Subdirectorate for Aid and Emergency Fund Management; Richard Erlangga, an expert adviser to the BNPB chief; and private-sector figures Syifa Nrika Ghifarin and Gery Prasetiawan.