Who was Ermanto Usman, the man allegedly killed by robbers in Bekasi?
Pensioner Ermanto Usman (65), a former employee of Jakarta International Container Terminal (JICT), died in an alleged robbery at his home in Jatibening, Pondok Gede, Bekasi City, West Java, on Monday, 2 March. In the incident, Ermanto’s wife, P (60), was also a victim and is currently receiving medical treatment at a hospital.
Ermanto may be a familiar figure to some. He was also the Chairman of the JICT Retirees Association.
Ermanto was known as one of the people who exposed alleged corruption related to port management. He also appeared on a podcast on the YouTube account Forum Keadilan TV on 15 December 2025 with the title ‘PELINDO BONEKA PT.HUTCHINSON (HONGKONG)… ADA PEMERINTAH DI ATAS PEMERINTAH…!!!’. In that podcast, Ermanto revealed details about a cooperation between Pelindo and Hutchison Port Holdings (Hong Kong) that was said to disadvantage the state.
It is known that in October 2015 the DPR even formed a special committee (pansus) to discuss issues highlighted by Ermanto. He said the pansus was formed at the urging of the JICT workers’ union. Ermanto claimed that during the process, the committee also asked the Audit Board of the Republic of Indonesia (BPK) to conduct an audit. From that audit, BPK found a new contract between PT Pelindo II and Hutchison Port Holdings which indicated a loss to state finances of US$360 million or around Rp4.08 trillion.
According to Ermanto, at least seven recommendations were produced by the pansus; one of them was to cancel the cooperation. However, that was never implemented.
At the end of the podcast, Ermanto presented three requests related to the case: “I have three requests. First, this government … Pelindo must be reformed,” he said. “Second, I hope there should be an investigatory audit, a thorough audit, including financial and performance audit, including assessment of the cooperation agreement between Pelindo and a third party. Third, I ask that corruption cases be investigated, whoever is involved.”
Not robbery, but murder
A member of Parliament from the PDIP faction and a colleague of Ermanto, Rieke Diah Pitaloka, said the death of her friend was not a case of ordinary robbery or murder. “I see strong indications this is not just murder; it is a form of silencing someone who has spoken out about alleged corruption in the port sector,” Rieke said on her personal Instagram account. She said Ermanto consistently spoke out about the JICT contract extension. He spoke out of conscience, not for personal interest. “People can be silenced, but the truth must not be buried,” she added. “I urge law enforcement authorities to thoroughly investigate to the root. Do not stop with the field perpetrators. If there are masterminds behind this, they must be held accountable,” she added.
Ermanto Usman and his wife were attacked by robbers at their home in Jatibening, Pondok Gede, Bekasi, West Java, on Monday, 2 March. The incident was only discovered by their child shortly before the pre-dawn meal during sahur. The child became suspicious because neither parent woke up to prepare sahur by 04:00 Western Indonesian Time. “When he woke up, he was startled; it’s nearly sahur. He went downstairs and found there was no answer; the lights were out,” said Bekasi City Police Criminal Investigation Unit (Satreskrim) Chief Andi Muhammad Iqbal to reporters, on Monday, 2 March. He said the child heard his mother at the time, but when approached, the door handle was already damaged and could not be opened. In short, the father was already dead, covered in blood. The mother had serious injuries and received medical treatment at a hospital.
From preliminary investigations, a number of items were reported missing as a result of the attack: a gold bracelet on the victim’s wrist and two car keys.