KPK Conducts Marathon Examinations in Bali, Investigating Extortion Case at Directorate General of Immigration
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is accelerating its investigation into alleged extortion in the processing of residence permits for foreign nationals at the Directorate General of Immigration. Over the past two days, investigators have conducted a marathon examination of 12 witnesses in Bali to uncover the alleged extortion practices, which are estimated to have involved at least Rp 145 billion.
The examinations took place on Wednesday and Thursday. In addition to investigating the suspected flow of money to immigration officials, the KPK has emphasised that visa service agencies are considered victims of the extortion.
On Thursday, KPK investigators examined six witnesses at the Denpasar Police headquarters, utilising the police’s examination rooms. Denpasar Police Chief Commissioner Leonardo Simatupang confirmed the examinations, stating that his team only provided the facilities. The six witnesses examined included the director of CV Visa Agung Bali, I Gede Arya Wijaya, and several staff members from related agencies.
KPK Spokesperson Budi Prasetyo stated that investigators are looking into the alleged payments made by service agencies to officials at the Ngurah Rai Immigration Office and the Denpasar Immigration Office. He explained that the payments were suspected to be outside the official non-tax state revenue tariffs. The agencies were allegedly forced to pay these sums to ensure that immigration documents would be processed, and failure to do so would result in applications being deliberately delayed.
The KPK believes these findings strengthen the suspicion of extortion as defined under the Corruption Eradication Law. The construction of the case positions the visa service agencies as victims who were compelled to pay illegal fees for the processing of documents such as KITAS and KITAP. The alleged practice is thought to have occurred between 2022 and 2026, with the modus operandi involving requests for money from foreign nationals or their agents to expedite or facilitate administrative processes.
Following his examination, the legal representative for CV Visa Agung Bali, F Yanuar Siregar, asserted that his client was a victim in the matter. He also clarified that one of the individuals examined was not an operational staff member of the company, stating that the company was unaware of the technical processes in the field as they were handled by third parties. He affirmed the company’s full support for the KPK’s efforts to investigate the case thoroughly in order to improve the immigration system and eliminate non-standard operational procedures.