Police Anti-Corruption Unit Names Two Suspects in Assembagoes Sugar Mill Graft Case
The Police Anti-Corruption Corps (Kortastipidkor) has named two suspects in an alleged corruption case concerning the Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning (EPCC) project for the development and modernisation of the Assembagoes Sugar Mill in Situbondo, under PTPN XI, spanning 2016 to 2022.
Police Grand Commissioner Ahmad Yusuf Afandi, Head of Operations for Kortastipidkor, announced during a press conference at the National Police Criminal Investigation Department building in Jakarta on Tuesday that the first suspect is DPP, who served as President Director of PTPN XI from 2015 to 2017. DPP is alleged to have manipulated the procurement process by approving an unqualified company, directing the formation of the Wika-Barata-Multinas joint operation consortium, and inflating the owner’s estimate without adequate technical basis, thereby benefiting certain parties.
The second suspect is TD, President Director of PT Multinas Indonesia, who is suspected of colluding to secure the project and failing to execute the work in accordance with the contract. Yusuf noted that from the planning stage, the project did not involve the required technology provider and failed to meet the obligation to issue a performance guarantee, resulting in the commissioning phase not being carried out as intended.
Yusuf stated that the naming of the two suspects is part of law enforcement efforts concerning a national strategic project financed with state funds. He explained that the modernisation programme was originally aimed at increasing national sugar production capacity, improving quality to meet international standards, and supporting national food security through a state capital injection of Rp650 billion, with approximately Rp250 billion allocated for the Assembagoes Sugar Mill development.
However, the investigation uncovered alleged irregularities from the planning stage through procurement to project execution. Investigators found structured actions that steered the tender process towards a specific company, even though that company did not meet the stipulated requirements. Furthermore, despite nearly all payments being made, the work performed failed to achieve the performance targets promised in the contract.
The suspects are charged under Article 2, paragraph (1) and/or Article 3 of Law Number 31 of 1999, as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001 on the Eradication of Corruption, in conjunction with Article 55, paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code, or Article 603 and/or Article 604 of Law Number 1 of 2023 on the Criminal Code, in conjunction with Article 20, letter c of Law Number 1 of 2023 on the National Criminal Code.