From the Trillion Dollar Scandal to the Corruption of the Apparatus

Photo by Luthfiah VOI

JAKARTA - The corruption scandal involving PT Asuransi Jiwasraya (Persero) and PT ASABRI (Persero) stands as a dark monument in the history of Indonesian finance. These two mega-corruption cases not only destroyed the reputation of the red insurance industry, but also deprived the basic rights of tens of thousands of public customers as well as hundreds of thousands of TNI soldiers, members of the National Police, and Ministry of Defense civil servants who depend on the institution.

With a total estimated combined losses from the results of audits of authorized agencies exceeding Rp. 39.5 trillion, the legal handling of these two cases continues to develop dynamically. Entering the middle of 2026, the vortex of this case even extends to dragging the law enforcement cluster itself.

This case confirms that corporate crimes on a giant scale require a commitment to radical systemic improvement so that they do not recur in the future. Anatomy of the Modus Operandi: Stock Investment Engineering Gorengan The Jiwasraya and ASABRI scandals have a very similar crime blueprint.

Both institutions adopted aggressive and risky capital market manipulation tactics, distancing themselves from the principle of prudence (prudential insurance) in pursuit of massive illusory profits. In the case of PT Asuransi Jiwasraya (Persero), the fundamental solvency problem that had accumulated since the previous decade was tried to be covered through financial statement engineering (window dressing).

According to Prof. Hikmahanto Juwana, corruption cases involving corporations should not stop only at the field actors. Law enforcement must be able to prove whether there are parties who control the decision (controlling mind) and who are the biggest beneficiaries (beneficial owner) of a transaction.

In various discussions regarding the eradication of corruption, Hikmahanto also reminded that law enforcement must maintain a balance between the effectiveness of eradicating corruption and legal certainty so as not to criminalize business decisions made in good faith.

Jiwasraya launched an insurance-wrapped investment product with high returns, such as the JS Saving Plan. The fresh funds collected from customers are then rotated into low-quality investment instruments. Management places state capital in poorly performing mutual funds and low-value stocks, popularly known as " gorengan stocks". This step is arranged in such a way as to collaborate with the private sector.

As a result of this haphazard placement of funds, Jiwasraya experienced massive default on customer claims. A similar modus, but on a much larger scale, occurred at PT ASABRI (Persero). As a pension fund manager for the military corps and law enforcement, ASABRI actually placed its managed funds in a very high-risk investment portfolio in the period 2011 to 2019.

Management agreed with external parties to artificially control the stock price. When the artificial stock price plummeted to a low point, ASABRI's investment assets were immediately worthless. The penetration of this crime feels very ironic because the funds that were corrupted were a monthly salary for soldiers who bet their lives on the front lines of national defense.

Krisnadwipayana University Professor of Criminal Law, Indriyanto Seno Adji said that the development of this case in the future must still continue, especially for other parties who have been designated as suspects, both for predicate crimes (origin crimes) and TPPU (Money Laundering Crimes). This tracking step is crucial so that the recovery of state financial losses (asset recovery) can be achieved to the maximum.

"In the case of corruption, state losses are only one element. Investigators must still prove the abuse of authority, causal relationship, and the element of enriching themselves or others. This firm sanction is also needed to send a signal for a thorough improvement in the management of our SOEs' investments," he said.

Based on the Official Audit, the financial losses from these two mega scandals are no longer based on rough estimates, but rather the results of detailed official investigative audits by authorized state agencies: PT Asuransi Jiwasraya (Persero): Total State Losses: Based on the official report released by the Chairman of the Indonesian Financial Supervisory Board (BPK), the total state financial losses due to mismanagement and corruption of mutual fund investments and shares in Jiwasraya reached Rp. 16,807,283,745,000.00 (Rp. 16.81 trillion).

Investment Loss Details: The value consists of losses on investments in equity instruments of IDR 4.65 trillion and investment losses on mutual fund instruments of IDR 12.16 trillion.

PT ASABRI (Persero): Total State Losses: The Chairman of the BPK RI, Agung Firman Sampurna, directly handed over the results of the Investigation of the State Loss Calculation (PKN) to the Attorney General's Office with a final figure of Rp. 22,788,566,482,083.00 (Rp. 22.78 trillion).

Investment Loss Details: The placement of funds in non-liquid stocks (such as LCGP, MYRX, SUGI) and mutual funds controlled by private affiliated groups resulted in an absolute decline in the value of investment assets that cannot be recovered (unrealized loss to realized loss).

The trial process of the main cluster of this case runs with high tension and produces progressive court decisions. The Attorney General's Office has managed to drag a number of big names from the ranks of both internal SOEs and capital market regulators to the green table.

Two central figures from the private sector who proved to be the brains behind the manipulation of investments in both companies are Benny Tjokrosaputro (Director of PT Hanson International) and Heru Hidayat (President Commissioner of PT Trada Alam Minera). Both were sentenced to life imprisonment in the Jiwasraya case. The judge also ordered them to pay compensation to the state in a value that broke the record of Indonesian judicial history, each worth Rp. 6.07 trillion for Benny Tjokrosaputro and Rp. 10.72 trillion for Heru Hidayat.

In the ASABRI case, Heru Hidayat's involvement even triggered a death penalty demand from the public prosecutor because he was considered to have committed repeated cross-corporate corruption, although in the end the panel of judges still sentenced a maximum cumulative life sentence. In addition to the private sector, the old board of directors of the two companies such as former President Director of Jiwasraya Hendrisman Rahim, former Finance Director Hary Prasetyo, former President Director of ASABRI Major General (Ret.) Adam Damiri, and Sonny Widjaja were also sentenced to heavy prison sentences.

The firmness of this legal sanction sends a strong signal to the public that the state does not tolerate betrayal of public funds. Sending corruptors behind bars is only half of the law enforcement struggle. The biggest challenge after the ruling with legal force remains (inkracht) is asset recovery to restore state losses.

The process of tracking, seizing, and auctioning assets belonging to convicts in the field faces various liquidity and ownership disputes. The Attorney General's Office of the Republic of Indonesia continues to pursue hidden assets belonging to convicts throughout Indonesia. The execution prosecutor team periodically carries out an execution seizure of Heru Hidayat's land, including an area of almost 2 hectares in the Tanjung Tinggi area, Belitung.

Not only land, various assets in the form of luxury vehicles, coal mines, tankers, to company shares are confiscated for auction to pay off the obligation of replacement money which touches the figure of tens of trillion rupiah. The problem is, the market valuation value of the confiscated assets often shrinks drastically when auctioned, or their ownership status is sued by third parties who claim to have good intentions.

This makes the process of returning funds slow and has not completely closed the total state loss hole.

Corruption Vortex in Law Enforcement Agencies

The Corruption Vortex in the Law Enforcement Agency (Illustration: Antara)

The eradication of ASABRI and Jiwasraya corruption entered a surprising phase in mid-2026. The focus of public attention has now shifted from the early corporate perpetrators to the potential for structural corruption in the process of handling cases and the execution of evidence itself.

In July 2026, the vortex of this case widened dramatically after the police (Ditreskrimsus) carried out a series of searches related to the management of evidence in the handling of the PT ASABRI and PT Jiwasraya cases for the period of handling the case from 2020 to 2025.

Former High-ranking Attorney General, former Jampidsus Febrie Adriansyah, was officially named a suspect for alleged corruption, gratification, and money laundering (TPPU) in handling commodities and confiscating the execution of the corrupt officials' assets.

Professor of Political Science, Ikrar Nusa Bhakti, in his statement emphasized the importance of opening this cluster of police cases openly. He stated, "Just open it all so that we know who is playing... this is to save the generation below so that they don't play with haram money." Ikrar highlighted the shocking findings in the form of the seizure of hundreds of billions of rupiah, including 74 kilograms of gold bars, which were allegedly obtained by the police through the method of suppressing the dispute over corrupt assets in the Jiwasraya, ASABRI, and PT Timah cases.

Meanwhile, the Coordinator of the Indonesian Anti-Corruption Society (MAKI), Boyamin Saiman, revealed the fact that this cluster of law enforcers was not a sudden rivalry between institutions, but the result of a long investigation. MAKI filed a report on alleged irregularities in the management of evidence of corruption since the end of 2024 which was then intensively investigated by the National Police's Corruption Eradication Task Force (Kortas Tipidkor) until mid-2026.

On the legal side of the defense, senior lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea was appointed as Febrie Adriansyah's lawyer to accompany the ongoing legal process. This new cluster opens a Pandora's box regarding the dangers of judicial corruption (judicial corruption). Instead of purely returning state funds, the seizure process and handling of evidence in the scale of trillions of rupiah are infiltrated by the practice of bribery and abuse of authority.

This latest development proves that external oversight of law enforcement agencies handling cases of fantastic value is still very weak and prone to deviation.

Impact of Public Unbelief

This structural scandal left a very deep impact on the Indonesian economy. First, the collapse of public confidence in the reliability of insurance companies and state-owned financial institutions. The public is very skeptical of placing long-term funds in red plate institutions if the management is not transparent.

Second, the state's fiscal burden has swollen due to the necessity of restructuring policyholders and capital injections to save the rights of innocent small customers. To prevent a recurrence of a similar tragedy, several recommendations from regulatory experts must be carried out without compromise. The recommendations include;

- Strengthening Risk Governance: Insurance institutions and pension funds are required to implement strict limits (investment ceilings) in the placement of funds in third-tier shares or high-risk instruments.

- Independence of the Financial Services Authority (OJK): Absolute supervisory functions must be tightened. Early detection steps (early warning system) against manipulation of financial statements or a decrease in solvency ratios must not be ignored for political compromise.

- Transparency of Evidence and Corruption Asset Management: The procedures for seizure, auction, and management of confiscated corruption assets must be made based on digital that can be accessed by the public in real time. This is important to close the gap for law enforcement officials to manipulate or embezzle confiscated assets.

The cases of ASABRI and Jiwasraya provide valuable lessons that the biggest enemy in managing public finances is not the dynamics of the global market, but organized greed within the system. The law has proven its firmness with life sentences for the main perpetrators.

Now, the country's most difficult task is to cleanse the law enforcement institutions of the remnants of abuse of authority, ensure that asset recovery is maximized, and build a surveillance fortress that can no longer be penetrated by structural corruption.