Is it true that Ahmad Dedi, the AD The Big Mafia figure at the Customs?

Special

JAKARTA - The demand for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to thoroughly investigate corruption practices in the Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DJBC) is getting stronger. The alleged existence of an old network that is still active is considered to be the root of the problem that has not been touched completely.

This highlight emerged in a national discussion entitled "Testing the Courage of the KPK to Uncover the Customs Mafia" which was held at the Faculty of Law, Pakuan University, Bogor.

In the forum, legal academic Dinalara Butar Butar revealed a key figure who was suspected of playing a major role in corruption practices in the Customs Service. The figure is said to be a former Customs official with the initials AD who is still believed to have a strong influence.

According to him, the practice of corruption at the Customs is not a single case, but part of an old network that continues to adapt even though the main actors have changed positions.

"The influence still runs even though he is no longer in office. This is what makes the practice of corruption continue to recur," he said.

Dinalara explained that one of the methods used in this practice is selling names or influence. This is done to increase the value of the request to business actors as if they have strong connections with certain parties.

This practice is considered to show that corruption in the customs sector has been systemic and involves a structured network. He assessed that the law enforcement measures that only target field actors are not effective enough to eradicate this practice thoroughly.

"If you only arrest the perpetrators on the surface, the main source has never been touched," he said.

Therefore, the KPK is encouraged not to stop at the prosecution of cases on a case-by-case basis, but also to dismantle the large network that is the source of corruption practices at the Customs.

This effort is considered important so that similar practices do not continue to recur and harm the country in the long term. The demand is also in line with the latest case developments, where the KPK together with PPATK began tracing illegal funds related to alleged corruption in the tax sector to uncover a wider network.

Based on the investigation, the figure with the initials AD is said to have been associated with a long-standing case at the Customs in the 2016-2017 period. However, his influence is still felt to this day and is considered a "long-standing cancer" in the customs system.

LHKPN data of Ahmad Dedi

Starting from the Wealth Report of State Organizers (LHKPN) belonging to the Customs official with the initials AD which is suspected of referring to Ahmad Dedi, it has become the public spotlight. Data contained in the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) document has raised a number of irregularities, especially in the assessment of land assets in the Bogor area, West Java.

In the LHKPN document for the 2024 period, AD's total wealth was recorded at around Rp7.65 billion. However, public attention is focused on the details of land assets which are assessed to be far below market prices.

The latest information states that the Ministry of Finance is investigating the suspected ownership of the suspicious account. The search is being carried out to determine whether there is or is not a violation related to the position and authority as a public official. Efforts to confirm to AD have also been carried out by a number of parties, including the media.