West Java Police Name 3 Corruption Suspects At Palabuhanratu Hospital

The Head of Public Relations of the West Java Police, Kombes Jules Abraham Abast, when the alleged corruption case was released in the misuse of incentive funds for COVID-19 health workers at the West Java Police Headquarters, Bandung City, Thursday (3/10/2024). (ANTARA/Rubby Jovan)

The Directorate of Special Criminal Investigation (Ditreskrimsus) of the West Java Police has named three suspects in the alleged corruption case of misappropriation of incentive funds for COVID-19 health workers (nakes) worth Rp. 5.4 billion at the Palabuhanratu Hospital, Sukabumi Regency.

The Head of Public Relations of the West Java Police, Kombes Jules Abraham Abast, revealed that the case was the development of the same case as the suspect with the initials HC in December 2023.

"The modus operandi is to make fictitious data in terms of the process of submitting incentive funds for health workers who handle COVID-19 and then make a fictitious accountability report," Jules said in Bandung as reported by ANTARA, Thursday, October 3.

Jules detailed that the three suspects had the initials DP who was the Director of the Palabuhanratu Hospital, then SR served as Head of Service at the Palabuhanratu Hospital, while WB was the Subcoror of Services and Financing at the Palabuhanratu Hospital.

He explained that the role of the DP was to propose the names of health workers who did not handle COVID-19 patients as entrusted to get incentives. The application for incentives comes from the 2020 State Budget and 2021 APBD funds.

The process of submitting the incentive funds, he continued, was that the suspect DP was assisted by SR and WB to make an administrative submission.

"The results of disbursement from health workers are requested to be collected and used for cash in the COVID-19 room, distributed to health workers and non-health workers as well as personal interests," he said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Director of the West Java Police Ditreskrimsus, AKBP Maruli Pardede said the alleged corruption committed by the suspects had violated a number of health minister regulations regarding the handling of COVID-19.

"Then from the results of the audit of the calculation of state financial losses from BPKP, the West Java Provincial Representative, there was a state financial loss whose loss was IDR 5.4 billion," said Maruli.

The suspects have applied 1,300 names of health workers and non-health workers to be submitted as recipients of incentive funds. According to him, each of these names is said to receive varying incentive funds.

"The perpetrators collected a budget so that the 1,300 people were budgets that were not intended for the rights of COVID personnel at that time. So it varied according to the level or expertise between Rp. 7 million to Rp. 15 million," he said.

The three of them were charged with Article 2 paragraph 1 and/or Article 3 of Law number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Corruption.