Profile of "Role Model" Dragged into Corruption Case

The photo and name of Muhammad Arif Nuryanta are still prominently displayed as a role model or exemplar on the official website of the South Jakarta District Court. However, the exact reason why the court has designated him as a role model remains unclear. It is likely that this recognition was earned due to his position as the Chief of the South Jakarta District Court.

Clean, equal, responsive, consistent, informative, dignified, accountable, and friendly words that accompany Arif's image as a role model stand in stark contrast to reality. He has been named a suspect in a corruption case for allegedly receiving bribes and gratuities amounting to Rp 60 billion in connection with the alleged bribery case for handling corruption related to crude palm oil (CPO) export affairs.

Arif Nuryanta has served as the Chief of the South Jakarta District Court since November 7, 2024. He holds a master's degree in law and holds the rank of Young Primary Supervisor (IV/c), the highest career level for civil servants, but still below the ranks of Intermediate Primary Supervisor (IV/d) and Senior Primary Supervisor (IV/e).

In addition to being considered a senior figure in the judiciary, Arif has traveled extensively across various courts in Indonesia. He once served as Deputy Chair of the Central Jakarta District Court and has presided over numerous cases as a judge in various regions, including Karawang, Bangkinang, Tebing Tinggi, and Purwokerto.

Several cases he handled once drew public attention and were considered controversial. One of them was when he acquitted two police defendants in the KM 50 tragedy that claimed the lives of members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) in 2023. Arif accepted the defendants' plea as they were deemed to have acted in self-defense.

Based on the State Officials' Wealth Report (LHKPN) as of January 10, 2025, Arif was recorded to have assets amounting to Rp 3.16 billion. This includes land and buildings valued at Rp 1.2 billion, transportation equipment worth Rp 154 million, movable assets amounting to Rp 91 million, securities valued at Rp 1.1 billion, cash and cash equivalents totaling Rp 515 million, and other assets amounting to Rp 72 million.

That the three judges were aware of the purpose of receiving the money, which was to have the case dismissed, and this became evident when, on March 19, 2025, the cooking oil corporation case was dismissed by the panel of judges.

Arif is not alone in the CPO bribery case. On Saturday (12/4/2025), he was named a suspect along with Wahyu Gunawan, who served as the Junior Civil Registrar at the North Jakarta District Court and previously worked at the Central Jakarta District Court, as well as Marcella Santoso and Aryanto, who are legal representatives of the company implicated in the CPO export corruption case.

Not long after, on Monday (14/4/2025), the Attorney General's Office named three other suspects who were judges in the corruption case of granting crude palm oil export facilities for the period January 2022 to April 2022. They were Djuyamto who sat as chief judge, Agam Syarif Baharuddin as member judge, and Ali Muhtarom as ad hoc judge.

Djuyamto is a judge who is currently serving as the Public Relations Officer of the South Jakarta District Court. He is a graduate of a master's degree in law from Sebelas Maret University who now holds the rank of Pembina Utama Madya (IV/d).

Before serving at the South Jakarta District Court, Djuyamto had tried cases in a number of places, including Temanggung District Court, Karawang District Court, Tanjungpandan District Court, Dompu District Court, Bekasi District Court, and North Jakarta District Court. He even served as a judge at the Bandung High Court.

Djuyamto had handled a number of controversial cases before being detained by the AGO. He was the chief judge when the perpetrator of the acid attack on Novel Baswedan was sentenced to prison. He was also a member judge in the obstruction of investigation trial in the case of Brigadier Nofriansyah Yosua Hutabarat. Recently, he also ruled that PDI-P politician Hasto Kristiyanto's pretrial motion could not be accepted.

Based on his LHKPN as of February 4, 2025, Djuyamto has assets of Rp 2.9 billion. This consists of land and buildings worth Rp 2.4 billion, transportation equipment worth Rp 401 million, other movable assets worth Rp 90.5 million, cash and cash equivalents worth Rp 168 million, and other assets of Rp 60 million. However, he also has debts of Rp 250 million.

Meanwhile, Agam Syarif Baharuddin is a career judge at the Central Jakarta District Court. Just like Djuyamto, Agam is also a graduate of a master's degree in law from Sebelas Maret University. He now holds the rank of young principal supervisor (IV/c).

During his time adjudicating cases, Agam often handled strategic cases concerning corporations and the economy. However, his odd rulings against palm oil corporations PT Wilmar Group, PT Permata Hijau Group, and PT Musim Mas Group attracted public attention because they were acquittals. In 2021, he handled a case of alleged violation of health quarantine by Rizieq Shihab.

Based on his LHKPN as of January 23, 2025, Agam has assets of Rp 2.3 billion. This consists of land and buildings worth Rp 1.6 billion, transportation equipment worth Rp 312 million, other movable assets worth Rp 121 million, cash and cash equivalents worth Rp 246 million.

Lastly, Ali Muhtarom, an ad hoc judge at the Corruption Court (Tipikor) at the Central Jakarta District Court. Information about Ali Muhtarom is not available because the official website of the Central Jakarta District Court cannot be accessed or is down. This was also stated by the Supreme Court, which claimed that the Central Jakarta District Court website could not be accessed since 2:30 a.m., Monday.

However, Muhtarom was involved in trying a number of major cases. These include corruption in the management of PT Asabri (Persero) investment funds, the case of buying and selling gold bullion PT Antam, the corruption case of former Papua Governor Lukas Enembe, and corruption of the base transceiver station or BTS 4G Bakti Ministry of Communication and Informatics.

Director of Investigation of the Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes at the Attorney General's Office Abdul Qohar, revealed that the three judges (Djuyamto, Agam, and Ali) also received money given by the defendant corporation. The three corporations involved in the case are suspected of giving Rp 60 billion in US and Singapore dollars to Muhammad Arif Nuryanta, who at that time served as Deputy Chairman of the Central Jakarta District Court.

"The three judges knew the purpose of receiving the money so that the case would be decided on slag and this became apparent when on March 19, 2025, the cooking oil corporation case was decided on slag by the panel of judges," he said.

So far, the number of suspects in the bribery case of case management at the Central Jakarta District Court has become seven people. Previously, the Attorney General's Office investigators named four suspects, including Muhammad Arif Nuryanta. The other three are Wahyu Gunawan as the Deputy Civil Clerk of the North Jakarta District Court who previously served at the Central Jakarta District Court, Marcella Santoso and Aryanto who are the company's attorneys.

They were named suspects after investigators found evidence of bribes or gratuities amounting to Rp60 billion to Arif. The money was given by Aryanto through Wahyu Gunawan to handle the corruption case of granting crude palm oil export facilities for the period January 2022 to April 2022 with the defendant being a corporation.