Sjamsul, Prajogo to return home

JAKARTA (JP): Magnates Sjamsul Nursalim and Prajogo Pangestu are expected to return to Jakarta next month to face graft charges, an official said on Friday.

Director general for immigration at the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights Iman Santoso, said his office was still in the process of revoking the two suspects' passports and replacing them with a single-entry permit to enter Indonesia.

"Both Sjamsul and Prajogo are currently in Singapore recovering from surgeries they had undergone. They cannot enter Indonesia without the permit, which can only be used once" he said on Friday.

Sjamsul, who is the owner of Gajah Tunggal group, was named suspect in a corruption case involving state funds totaling Rp 4 trillion (US$457 million) provided by Bank Indonesia as liquidity support for his bank, Bank Dagang Negara Indonesia, between 1997 and 1999.

Timber tycoon Prajogo, who has also been implicated in a graft case, avoided police summons by initially claiming business commitments in Singapore and later told police that he had to undergo gall bladder surgery in Singapore. (bby)