Jakarta Corruption Court Judge: Hasto Not Proven to Have Obstructed Investigation

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – The panel of judges at the Jakarta Corruption Court stated that the defendant Hasto Kristiyanto was not proven to have obstructed the investigation related to the bribery case concerning the interim replacement of a member of the DPR, Harun Masiku. Based on this, Hasto is free from the charges under Article 21 of the Law on the Eradication of Corruption Crimes. Currently, the judge is reading the considerations for the bribery allegations.

"Based on all the facts, there is no evidence of the defendant's intention to prevent, obstruct, or thwart the investigation process; therefore, the element of intentionally preventing, obstructing, or thwarting directly or indirectly the investigation, prosecution, or examination of the suspect, witness, or defendant in a corruption case is not fulfilled," said Judge Sunoto, while reading the considerations, Friday (25/7/2025).

In its considerations, the panel of judges assessed that the public prosecutor from the KPK failed to prove the element of intent on Hasto's part to obstruct the ongoing legal process. The judge stated that Article 21 of the Anti-Corruption Law is a material offense, the proof of which requires the existence of a concrete consequence in the form of an obstruction or failure of the investigation.

"In this case, there is no evidence that the investigation failed because the investigation is still ongoing according to applicable procedures," said Judge Rios.

The panel of judges refuted one by one the main allegations made by the prosecutor in the obstruction of investigation charges. Regarding the order to sink the mobile phone, the judges found that the order did not come from Hasto and referred to an internal party ritual. The most crucial fact is that the mobile phone in question, which was alleged to have been destroyed, still exists and can be seized by the KPK.

"Objective facts show that witness Sri Hastomo's cellphone is still in the KPK's confiscation, so there is no accusation of destroying evidence," said the judge.

In this case, there is no evidence of a failed investigation because the investigation is still proceeding according to applicable procedures.

Similarly, regarding the allegation of hiding Harun Masiku at the Police Science College (PTIK), the judge referred to the testimony of the KPK investigator on duty at that time, who stated that they did not see the presence of Hasto or his vehicle at the location.

Legally, the judge also highlighted the issue of timing in the prosecutor's indictment. The alleged act occurred on January 8, 2020, while the suspect status for Harun Masiku was only established on January 9, 2020. According to the judge, the process on January 8 was still in the investigation stage, not the inquiry stage, which is not included within the scope of Article 21 of the Corruption Eradication Law.

The judge also considered that all of Hasto's actions related to the PAW process were based on the decision of the PDI-P DPP plenary meeting, rather than personal initiative. This, along with Hasto's cooperative attitude during the legal process, was deemed inconsistent with the allegations of intent to obstruct the legal process.

With this ruling, Hasto Kristiyanto is released from the legal entanglement of the obstruction of investigation charge. Currently, the panel of judges is continuing the reading of the considerations for the charges related to the alleged bribery.