P21 Adulterated Premium Rice Case, Amran: Public Demands Perpetrators Be Severely Punished

Jakarta, Kompas.com - Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman said the public hopes the perpetrators of the alleged adulterated premium rice case will be punished as severely as possible. Amran made the remarks when asked for comment on the case file concerning the alleged adulterated rice, which is in the hands of the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) and has been declared P21 by the Public Prosecutor’s Office (JPU).

“Yes, punish him as severely as possible; it’s simple,” Amran said. Amran said such expectations are not the wish of the Ministry of Agriculture or himself as Minister of Agriculture. “Netizens and the public want it; the public longs for the decisiveness as commanded by the President, while we are simply being maligned even more if we were to do something wrong,” Amran said.

For reference, the alleged adulterated rice case began with Amran and his team’s discovery on 26 June 2025. Amran found anomalies in the quality and price of premium rice on the market. He dispatched a team to 10 provinces examined; the Ministry of Agriculture collected 268 rice samples from 212 brands. The results showed that a number of premium rice brands circulating below regulatory standards by 85.56 percent, and the highest retail price (HET) discrepancy by 59.78 percent.

Previously, Brigadier General Ade Safri Simanjuntak, Director of Special Economic Crimes (Dirtipideksus) at Bareskrim Polri, announced that the alleged adulterated rice case had been declared P21 by the prosecutors. Meaning that the prosecutors consider the investigation file collected by Bareskrim Polri investigators to be complete and ready for submission to the court.

“Declared complete by the Public Prosecutor’s Office at the Attorney General’s Office and the East Jakarta Public Prosecutor’s Office,” Ade Safri said in a written statement on Saturday (9 May 2026).

The case implicates the President Director of PT Buyung Poetra Sembada, SB, the producer of the Topi Koki brand and owner of Sam Yauw store, RSS, which produces the Jelita brand rice. They are suspected of selling premium rice that did not meet quality standards and did not go through the required quality control process. They are suspected of committing Consumer Protection Crimes as regulated under Article 62 in conjunction with Article 8(1)(a) and/or (f) of Indonesian Law No. 8 of 1999 on Consumer Protection, in conjunction with Indonesian Law No. 1 of 2023 on the Penal Code, in conjunction with Indonesian Law No. 1 of 2026 on Penal Code Adjustments.