Sjamsul repays Rp 10.1t debt to govt

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Abdul Khalik, Jakarta

The Attorney General's Office has halted its corruption investigation into Sjamsul Nursalim after the businessman repaid all Rp 10.1 trillion of Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance (BLBI) funds his firms misused at the height of economic crisis in 1999.

Attorney General M.A. Rachman said on Thursday that the defunct Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) had issued Sjamsul a letter certifying that he had repaid his debts to the state.

"We have issued a letter halting the corruption investigation into the businessman after he repaid his debts to the state," Rahman said.

Spokesman for the Attorney General's Office Kemas Yahya Rachman said the letter was issued on July 23, 2004.

Sjamsul, who is living in neighboring country Singapore, had been declared a suspect for allegedly misusing BLBI funds worth Rp 10.1 trillion (US$1.12 billion).

According to Presidential Decree No. 8/2002, debtors who repay their debts, either in cash or assets, shall be acquitted of all criminal charges.

Aside from Sjamsul, seven other debtors have also secured letters from IBRA that they have repaid their debts. They are Denin Tong of the International Steel Bank, Husodo Angkow of Bank Sewu International and owner of Bank Papan Sejahtera and Bank Istimarat, Hasyim Djojohadikusumo of Bank Pelita, Hokiarto of Hokindo Bank, The Ning King of Hutama Bank and Muhammad "Bob" Hasan of Bank Umum National.

"We are examining all these debtors because according to the law we have three options -- to continue the investigation, stop the investigation or close the case," Rachman said.

Sjamsul was declared a suspect in a BLBI case in 2000 after his Bank Dagang Nasional Indonesia (BDNI) failed to repay BLBI funds. In addition, the bank violated the legal lending limit by channeling most of its loans to his group's subsidiaries.

He dodged the legal investigation by claiming he needed to seek medical treatment abroad and has stayed in Singapore since 2001. Indonesian has no extradition treaty with Singapore.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Corruption Watch said that halting the investigation against Sjamsul was a violation of Law No. 31/1999 which stipulates that asset recovery in corruption cases does not annul the corruption charges.

The non-governmental organization also argued that the letter would set a bad precedence for law enforcement in the future.

It also urged that the powerful Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) take over the case based on Article 8 of Law No. 30/2002 on KPK.

KPK is authorized to reopen an investigation into a corruption case that state prosecutors or police close.