Six Former PT Antam Officials Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison, Judge Asks Directors to Take Responsibility

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Six former officials of PT Aneka Tambang or Antam Tbk were sentenced to eight years in prison for illegally affixing the logo or seal on Antam's gold products. As a result, the market for the gold products was damaged, causing state financial losses amounting to Rp 3.3 trillion. The panel of judges also requested that this case be investigated up to the director level.

The six former officials in question are: Vice President of the Precious Metal Processing and Refining Business Unit (UBPP LM) of PT Antam (2008-2011) Titik Kustiningsih; Vice President of UBPP LM PT Antam (2011-2013) Herman; Senior Executive Vice President of UBPP LM PT Antam (2013-2017) Dody Martimbang; General Manager of UBPP LM PT Antam (2017-2019) Abdul Hadi Aviciena; GM of UBPP LM PT Antam for the period 2019-2021 M Abi Anwar; and GM of UBPP LM PT Antam for the period 2021-2022 Iwan Dahlan.

Chief Judge Dennie Arsan stated that the defendants were proven legally and convincingly guilty of corruption. They enriched others while simultaneously causing losses to the state amounting to Rp 3.3 trillion during the eleven years (2010-2021) that illegal gold operations took place.

"Therefore, the defendant is sentenced to imprisonment for eight years each," he stated during the verdict hearing of the illegal gold stamp case of PT Antam at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday (27/5/2025).

In addition to imprisonment, the defendants were sentenced to pay a fine of IDR 750 million. If the fine is not paid, it will be replaced with a prison sentence of four months. This ruling by the judge is lighter than the prosecutor's demand, which requested the judge to impose a nine-year prison sentence and a fine of IDR 750 million, with a subsidiary of six months' confinement.

According to the panel of judges, the actions of the defendants were intentional misconduct. The defendants consciously affixed the "LM" logo, serial numbers, and certificates bearing the label of the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) on the gold of their customers. The customers in question are seven defendants from the private sector who will be tried in a separate case.

Therefore, the panel of judges assessed that the criminal liability for this corruption offense is not only the responsibility of the defendants as the leaders of UBPP LM, but also constitutes the criminal responsibility of the board of directors of PT Antam.

On the other hand, as leaders of UBPP LM PT Antam, each defendant holds a strategic position that, by organizational structure, is directly accountable to the board of directors of PT Antam. The panel of judges deemed it appropriate to hold the board of directors of PT Antam accountable.

Moreover, the gold smelting and refining services that are at the core of this case are not new. These activities have been ongoing for a long time, specifically for more than 11 years, starting before 2010 and continuing until 2017 for smelting services, and until 2021 for refining services. In fact, these activities were already taking place before and after the defendants held leadership positions at UBPP LM PT Antam.

The activities of gold melting and refining services are clearly outlined in the Work Plan and Company Budget (RKAP) specifically prepared for UBPP LM. This project is utilized by the board of directors of PT Antam as material in formulating the company's overall annual RKAP. The RKAP of PT Antam is submitted annually and receives approval from the commissioners.

"The panel of judges assessed that the criminal liability for this corruption offense is not only the responsibility of the defendants as leaders of UBPP LM, but also constitutes the criminal responsibility of the board of directors of PT Antam," stated the judge.

The board of directors of PT Antam, as the management and administrator of the company, should carry out their duties in good faith, honestly, carefully, and responsibly in accordance with the principles of good corporate governance.

Illegal activities that have been ongoing for a long time and are listed in the RKAP as well as the annual financial reports are deemed sufficient to prove that the board of directors of PT Antam is aware of these activities.

In addition to the board of directors, the judge also assessed that there is a leader of UBPP LM PT Antam who needs to be held legally accountable. The individual in question is Tri Hartono, who served as the GM of UBPP LM PT Antam from March 1, 2013, to May 14, 2013.

Hartono is considered to have participated and collaborated in unlawful acts that enriched others and harmed the state finances from PT Antam. In fact, the losses during his tenure reached Rp 281.81 billion.

"Therefore, the panel of judges considers it legally reasonable to ask for criminal responsibility from Tri Hartono," the judge added.