Prosecutors Urge Judges to Reject Nadiem's Plea, Maintain 18-Year Sentence in Chromebook Case

Public Prosecutors have asked the panel of judges to reject the entire defence plea submitted by former Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, Nadiem Anwar Makarim, in the alleged corruption case concerning Chromebook procurement at the Ministry of Education and Culture. The request was made by the prosecutor during the replication read out at the trial. The prosecutor assessed that all arguments put forward by the defendant’s legal team were unable to undermine the indictment or the legal facts that have been proven during the trial. ‘All the defence arguments are merely an attempt to reinterpret facts that are already clear and must therefore be rejected,’ the prosecutor said in the replication. The prosecutor stated that they stand by the sentencing demand read out at the hearing on 13 May 2026. According to the prosecutor, all elements of the primary indictment against Nadiem remain legally and convincingly proven. In their petition, the prosecutor asked the panel of judges to declare Nadiem proven guilty of committing a criminal act of corruption jointly, as stipulated in Article 603 of Law Number 1 of 2023 concerning the Criminal Code in conjunction with the Corruption Eradication Law. The prosecutor also maintained the request for the judge to impose an 18-year prison sentence on Nadiem, taking into account the time spent in detention and ordering that the defendant be promptly held in a state detention centre. In addition to the prison sentence, the prosecutor is still demanding Nadiem pay a fine of Rp1 billion. Should the fine not be paid within one month after the verdict gains permanent legal force, the prosecutor requested that the defendant’s assets be seized and auctioned to cover the obligation. If the seizure is insufficient, it is to be replaced with 190 days of imprisonment. Furthermore, the prosecutor also insisted that the panel of judges impose an additional penalty in the form of restitution payments of Rp809.59 billion and Rp4.87 trillion, which are described as assets belonging to the defendant that are disproportionate to his legitimate income or suspected to originate from criminal acts of corruption. According to the prosecutor, if the restitution is not paid within one month after the verdict gains permanent legal force, the prosecutor may seize and auction the defendant’s property. Should the owned assets prove insufficient, the penalty is requested to be replaced with nine years of imprisonment. Additionally, the prosecutor asked the panel of judges to determine the status of evidence as listed in the sentencing demand and to charge the defendant court costs of Rp10,000. Before delivering the petition, the prosecutor concluded that all responses submitted in the replication show that the defendant’s defence plea was unable to nullify a single legal fact revealed during the trial. ‘Or should the Panel of Judges hold a different opinion, we request a verdict that is as fair as possible,’ the prosecutor said, closing the replication. The hearing for the alleged Chromebook procurement corruption case will next proceed to the rejoinder agenda from the defendant before the panel of judges delivers its verdict.