Palembang District Court Free Sentence 5 PTBA Corruption Defendants

The Panel of Judges at the Palembang District Court (PN), South Sumatra, acquitted five defendants in the alleged corruption case in the acquisition of shares belonging to PT Satria Bahana Sarana (SBS) by PT Bukit Asam (PTBA) Tbk. through PT Bukit Asam Investama (BMI) which is a subsidiary of PT Bukit Asam Tbk.

The verdict was read out directly by the panel of judges led by Pitriadi in front of the public prosecutor (JPU) and the five defendants at the trial held at the Palembang Corruption Court (PN), Monday, April 1.

The five defendants included the former President Director of PT Bukit Asam Tbk for the 2011-2016 period Milawarma, Deputy Chair of Shares Acquisition of PT SBS Nurtima Tobing, Former Director of Business Development of PT Bukit Asam Tbk Anang Dri Prasetya, Head of the PTBA Saiful Islam Mining Acquisition Team, and owner of PT Satria Bahana Sarana (SBS) Tjahyono Imawan.

"The defendants were not legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing a criminal act of corruption as in the indictment of the public prosecutor, both primary, subsidiary and more subsidiary," Pitriadi said as quoted by ANTARA.

Responding to the judge's decision, Public Prosecutor Hermasyah immediately stated that his party would file an appeal.

In the previous trial, the Public Prosecutor charged the defendants Saiful Islam and Nurtima Tobing with 18 years in prison and the defendant Anung Dri Prasetya was sentenced to 18 years and six months in prison. Meanwhile, the other two defendants, Milawarma and Tjahyono Imawan, were sentenced to 19 years in prison.

In addition to imprisonment, each defendant is also subject to a fine of Rp. 750 million. Which, if the fine is not paid, it must be replaced with imprisonment for six months.

According to the prosecutor, the actions of the five defendants did not support the government's program in the context of implementing a State that was clean and free from corruption, collusion and nepotism (KKN).

Meanwhile, the former President Director of PT Bukit Asam Tbk for the 2011-2016 period, Milawarma, said that he was grateful for the judge's decision which declared himself free from punishment.

"Alhamdulillah and I will take time for my family, namely family time," he said.