Maman gets nine years in prison

JAKARTA (JP): The South Jakarta District Court yesterday sentenced Maman Suparman, formerly deputy manager of Bapindo's Jakarta branch, to nine years imprisonment for his role in allowing businessman Eddy Tansil to swindle the government-owned bank out of $448 million.

Across town in the Central Jakarta District Court, the trial of Tansil saw the government prosecutors pushing for life imprisonment for the owner of the Golden Key Group.

Maman, 48 years old, is the first person to be convicted in the huge loan scandal which almost shattered the reputation of the entire Indonesian banking system. The loss suffered was so huge that the prosecutors are slapping corruption charges on each and every person believed to be involved.

The trial of former Bapindo director Towil Heryoto began last week, while those of three other former directors - Subekti Ismaun, Sjahrizal and Bambang Kuntjoro -- are slated to start soon.

The term handed down for Maman by the South Jakarta court was four years lighter than sought by the prosecution.

Judge Soedjatman, who presided over the trial, said Maman was responsible for $175 million of the total losses incurred by Bapindo in its dealings with Tansil.

As the deputy manager of Bapindo's Jakarta branch between 1989 and 1992, Maman handled Tansil's loans. He violated standard banking procedures allowing the businessman to cash in on the loans, instead of the intended recipients.

The judge fined Maman Rp 15 million ($7,100) and ordered that the state confiscate a house, with a current market value of around Rp 700 million ($330,000), in the exclusive Pulomas residential area in East Jakarta.

The court also ordered the government to return Rp 10 million from a bank deposit, previously frozen by the attorney general's office, to Maman.

The diminutive Maman remained silent throughout the four-hour hearing as the judges took turns reading the basis for the verdict. The packed court room became suddenly silent when Judge Soedjatman asked Maman to stand up before he read the final verdict statement.

Maman, who stood with his head down during sentencing, was later asked whether or not he would appeal against the nine-year jail sentence. "Please ask my lawyers," he responded.

Denny Kailimang, who headed Maman's defense team, rose from his chair and stated firmly his intention to appeal. He also lodged a protest saying that he had been denied access to 10 files documenting transactions in which Maman was involved which were used by the prosecution to indict him.

Chief prosecutor Mohammad Yamin said he would think the verdict over before deciding whether or not to appeal.

Denny had earlier said that his client was simply a "victim of the bank's bureaucratic power play", someone expected to take the rap for mistakes committed at higher levels.

Judge Soedjatman in his verdict ruled that Maman, as a senior and experienced banker, should have observed the proper procedures in dealing with Tansil's loans.

Instead, Maman converted the terms of the loans, from usance letters of credit to red clause letters, allowing Tansil to cash in on the loans originally intended to finance the purchase of machinery and equipment for petrochemical projects.

Bribes

The court also found that Maman accepted bribes totaling Rp 306 million ($142,000) from Tansil and other Bapindo clients as charged by the prosecution. The verdict stated that this explained in part how Maman came into a possession of a mansion, something which his income from the bank could not have covered.

The court rejected Maman's explanation that he saved enough from his salary and from leftover funds after field and overseas trips to pay Rp 300 million for the Pulomas house when he bought it two years ago.

The judges noted in their verdict only two mitigating factors: Maman had no prior criminal record and he showed remorse during the trial.

They also cited several factors that worked against him, including the fact that his actions caused huge financial losses to the state. "And it tarnished public opinion of government banks," the presiding judge said.

Denny told reporters after the session that he was determined to petition for a new trial because the prosecution had denied him access to documents used to indict his client.

He also said he could not accept the court's treatment of Maman's trial as a way for paving the way for the government to prosecute others on corruption charges.

"If the way the court handled Maman's case is used as a yardstick, then I think there will be many people prosecuted for corruption," he said. (05)

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