Steps Taken by the Attorney General's Office to Face Heavy Challenges
In the alleged corruption case of PT Duta Palma Group owned by the suspect Surya Darmadi, Attorney General did not only use instruments for state losses, but also tried to prove the state's economic losses.
Suspect Surya Darmadi was taken to Adhyaksa General Hospital, Jakarta, for a health check after undergoing an examination at the Attorney General's Office (18/8/2022).
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The move by the Attorney General's Office (AGO) to apply the state economy clause, not only to the state losses, in the Surya Darmadi case will face serious challenges. However, if successful, the step will be very significant in returning state losses.
According to the results of the latest calculations by the Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes at the AGO in collaboration with the Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP) released by the AGO in Jakarta on Tuesday (Aug. 30), state financial losses and the state economy in the case reached Rp 104.1 trillion (US$7 billion). In detail, the state financial loss was Rp 4.9 trillion ($330 million) and the state economic losses reached Rp 99.2 trillion ($6.7 billion).
A researcher from the Center for Anti-Corruption Studies at Gadjah Mada University, Zaenur Rochman, when contacted on Tuesday, appreciated the step and supported the prosecutor's office to prosecute Surya with an approach to the loss of the state economy. This approach is rarely used. If successful, it will be a monumental corruption case and very significant in returning state losses.
Nevertheless, he reminded, it is not easy for the prosecutor’s office to prove it in court. The prosecutor's office must prepare evidence for the actions of Surya and his company which caused losses to the state economy. Therefore, there are at least three steps that the prosecutor can take. First, to prove a causal relationship between Surya's actions and the state's economic losses. The losses, for example, affect state revenues.
Second, the prosecutor's office needs to rely on the calculation of state economic losses from expert statements, in this case economists. They can calculate the loss of state revenue. Third, the prosecutor's office needs to pay attention to the principle of legal certainty. That means that the economic losses must be certain in value.
Another aspect that is no less important is the panel of judges appointed by the court to handle cases. The judges must have the same progressive views as the prosecutors.
PUSPENKUM KEJAKSAAN AGUNG
The helicopter is suspected to be related to the alleged corruption and money laundering case with the suspect Surya Darmadi, which was confiscated by the Attorney General's Office investigators some time ago.
State rights
Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes Febrie Adriansyah said at a press conference yesterday that in the alleged corruption and money laundering case of PT Duta Palma Group owned by the suspect Surya Darmadi, his party did not only use instruments for state losses, but also tried to prove the state's economic losses.
"All the rights of the state are calculated so that the value is large," he said.
Deputy for Investigations at BPKP Agustina Arumsari explained that the scope of the calculation by BPKP is the oil palm plantation business activity of PT Duta Palma Group, which is in charge of five companies managing 37,095 hectares of oil palm plantations.
State losses and the state economy which reached Rp 104.1 trillion have taken into account the state's property rights and the impact of forest benefits that are not received by the state as well as the impact of forest damage due to the conversion of forest functions into oil palm land. In the calculation process, BPKP also involved environmental experts.
All the rights of the state are calculated so that the value is large.
In that case, investigators confiscated 40 assets belonging to Surya in the form of land and six palm oil mills in a number of regions. Other seized assets were 3 apartment units, 2 hotels and 1 helicopter. The total value of assets in the form of objects or goods is around Rp 11.7 trillion ($788 million).
Investigators also confiscated Surya's money, which was spread across a number of accounts, amounting to Rp 5.1 trillion, US$11.4 million and S$646.04. There are also four tugboats in Batam, Riau Islands and Palembang, South Sumatra, of which the value has not yet been estimated.
One of the tugboats was confiscated by the joint task force of the AGO and the South Sumatra High Court in the Sungai Lilin area, Musi Banyuasin. The task force also confiscated the barge.
"After being estimated, the possible nominal (value) of the ships is Rp 40 billion ($2.3 million)," said Head of the South Sumatra High Prosecutor's Office, Sarjono Turin, on Tuesday.
