Judge Sentenced APE Corruption Defendant In Central Aceh 4.6 Years In Prison

The photo archive - Defendant in corruption in the procurement of educational play tools attended the trial at the Corruption Court at the Banda Aceh District Court in Banda Aceh. ANTARA/M Haris SA

The panel of judges at the Corruption Court at the Banda Aceh District Court sentenced the defendant to corruption in the procurement of educational game tools (APE) in Central Aceh Regency to four years and six months in prison. The sentence was read out by the panel of judges during a trial at the Corruption Court at the Banda Aceh District Court in Banda Aceh, Antara, Tuesday, May 21. The trial with the panel of judges chaired by Teuku Syarafi and accompanied by R Deddy Haryanto and Heri Alfian, each as member judges. The defendant, on behalf of Agus Sulaeman, is a partner in the procurement of indoor and outdoor educational play tools at the Central Aceh District Education Office, for the 2019 fiscal year. In addition to imprisonment, the panel of judges also sentenced the defendant Agus Sulaeman to pay a fine of Rp. 50 million, a subsidiary or a substitute sentence if he did not pay three months in prison. The panel of judges also sentenced the defendant to pay compensation for state losses of Rp. 777 million. If the defendant does not have the property to pay the replacement money, he will be sentenced to two years and six months in prison. "The defendant was found guilty of violating Article 3 in conjunction with Article 18 Paragraph (1) letter a, b of Law Number 31 of 1999 which was amended by Law Number 20 of 2001 concerning the eradication of criminal acts of corruption," said the panel of judges. The sentence is lighter than the demands of the public prosecutor (JPU). Previously, Public Prosecutor Antoni Mustaqbal from the Central Aceh District Attorney charged the defendant Agus Sulaeman with five years in prison. In addition to being sentenced to five years in prison, the Public Prosecutor also demanded that the defendant Agus Sulaeman pay a fine of Rp. 100 million, subsidiary to one month in prison. As well as being sentenced to pay state losses of more than Rp. 777 million. The panel of judges stated that the Central Aceh District Education Office in the 2019 fiscal year procured educational game tools for kindergartens. The educational game, said the panel of judges, consists of an indoor room with a budget of IDR 2.47 billion and an outdoor educational game of IDR 2.47 billion. Based on the facts at the trial, the defendant won the procurement auction. However, the defendant did not carry out the work according to the contract, causing a loss to the state of more than Rp. 1 billion. Before deciding the sentence, the panel of judges considered the aggravating thing that the defendant's actions did not support the government's efforts to create a clean government and eradicate corruption. "The defendant was uncooperative during the investigation. As for mitigating matters, the defendant was polite during the trial and admitted his actions and had family responsibilities," said the panel of judges.

After reading the verdict, the panel of judges asked the defendant and the prosecutor whether to accept the verdict or think about it. The defendant and the prosecutor expressed their thoughts before determining their attitude towards the verdict of the panel of judges.