KPK Deposits IDR 92.9 Billion To State Treasury From PT Merial Esa

Head of KPK News Section Ali Fikri (Intermediate DOC)

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has deposited replacement money related to the corruption case in the procurement of satellite and drone monitoring in Bakamla in 2016 from the PT Merial Esa corporation amounting to Rp92.9 billion to the state treasury. "The KPK Executing Prosecutor's Team through the Bureau of Finance has deposited the first installment of Rp92.9 billion into the state treasury," said Head of the KPK News Section Ali Fikri when confirmed in Jakarta, Antara, Tuesday, January 13. Ali explained that the deposit was made after the legal force remained in the cassation decision with the defendant PT Merial Esa, represented by the corporate management who acted for and on behalf of the company, namely the Director of PT Merial Esa Fahmi Darmawansyah. Ali explained that the nominal amount was part of the obligation of replacement money from PT Merial Esa amounting to Rp126 billion. "KPK continues to be committed to maximizing asset recovery to create a deterrent effect, in addition to corporal punishment not only for individual actors, but also corporations," he said. Previously, the Jakarta Corruption Court sentenced PT Merial Esa as a corporation to pay a fine of Rp. 200 million plus a replacement money of Rp. 126.135 billion minus the money confiscated for being proven to have committed corruption in the procurement of satellite monitoring and drones in Bakamla in 2016. "To declare that the defendant PT Merial Esa is legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing a criminal act of corruption together and continues as in the first alternative indictment, imposing a principal sentence against the defendant PT Merial Esa in the form of a fine of Rp. 200 million," said Chairman of the Jakarta Corruption Court. Surachmat, Tuesday (19/4/2022). Sitting on the chair of the defendant representing PT Merial Esa is Fahmi Darmawansyah as Director of PT Merial Esa who has also been sentenced to two years and eight months in the same case in 2017. "Punishing PT Merial Esa with an additional penalty in the form of payment of replacement money to the state amounting to Rp126.135 billion was compensated by taking into account the money that had been confiscated amounting to Rp92,974,837,246, Rp22.5 billion and 800 thousand US dollars, whose excess was to be returned to the defendant," added the judge. With the condition that if PT Merial Esa does not pay the replacement money no later than 1 month after the decision has permanent legal force and can still be extended for another month, PT Merial Esa does not also pay the replacement money in question, then his property can be confiscated by the prosecutor and auctioned off to pay the replacement money. PT Merial Esa was proven guilty of a crime as stated in the first indictment of Article 5 paragraph (1) letter b of Law No. 31 of 1999 as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001 concerning the eradication of criminal acts of corruption in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) of the 1st Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 64 paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code. The judge also did not impose additional penalties on PT Merial Esa in the form of closing all companies for one year as demanded by the KPK prosecutor. "Because the complexes of the defendant's problems are so large, especially the problem of living employees who work for the defendant, the panel of judges is of the opinion that additional criminal penalties in the form of revocation of the defendant's rights in carrying out the duties and obligations of the defendant as a corporation are considered too burdensome for the defendant, therefore the panel of judges in giving decisions regarding this matter is seen as having fulfilled a sense of justice as in the verdict," said the judge. The verdict is lower than the demands of the KPK public prosecutor (JPU) who demanded that PT Merial Esa be sentenced to a fine of Rp. 275 million plus paying compensation of Rp. 133,104,44,139 minus the money confiscated by the KPK of Rp. 92,974,837,246, Rp. 22.5 billion and 800 thousand US dollars.

"The situation is burdensome, the defendant's actions do not support the government's program in eradicating corruption. The mitigating situation is that the defendant PT Merial Esa has never been convicted, the defendant is a place to depend on many people to earn a living or work," said the judge. In this case, PT Merial Esa was proven to have given bribes to a number of parties to get satellite monitoring projects and drones for the 2016 Fiscal Year.