Nine Suspects in Sugar Import Case Return Rp 565.3 Billion

JAKARTA, KOMPAS - Investigators from the Attorney General's Office have seized Rp 565.3 billion in a suspected corruption case involving sugar imports at the Ministry of Trade during 2015-2016. Although the money was voluntarily handed over by the suspects, the Attorney General's Office has confirmed that this will not eliminate the alleged criminal acts committed.

The Director of Investigation at the Junior Attorney General for Special Crimes of the Attorney General's Office, Abdul Qohar, in a press statement in Jakarta on Tuesday (25/2/2024), stated that investigators had confiscated money from 9 suspects in the alleged sugar import corruption case at the Ministry of Trade for the years 2015-2016 amounting to Rp 565.3 billion. The money will be accounted for as restitution for the state losses incurred in the case.

"This state financial loss is a loss caused by the actions of the nine suspects mentioned earlier, and the individuals concerned have shown good faith in returning it," said Qohar.

The details of the returned funds are as follows: from the suspect Tonny Wijaya (PT Angels Product) amounting to Rp 150.8 billion, from the suspect Wisnu Hendraningrat (PT Andalan Furnindo) amounting to Rp 60.9 billion, from the suspect Hansen Setiawan (PT Sentra Usahatama Jaya) amounting to Rp 41.3 billion, from the suspect Indra Suryaningrat (PT Medan Sugar Industry) amounting to Rp 77.2 billion, and from the suspect Then Surianto Eka Prasetyo (PT Makassar Tene) amounting to Rp 39.2 billion.

Other restitutions include Rp 41.2 billion from suspect Hendrogiarto Antonio Tiwow (PT Duta Sugar International), Rp 47.8 billion from suspect Ali Sanjaya B (PT Kebun Tebu Mas), Rp 74.5 billion from suspect Hans Falita Hutama (PT Berkah Manis Makmur), and Rp 32 billion from suspect Eka Sapanca (PT Permata Dunia Sukses Utama).

Qohar stated that the returned money was then confiscated as evidence. The funds will be used to recover state losses in accordance with the case period, namely 2015-2016.

"That in 2015 to 2016, in order to fulfill the national sugar stock and stabilize sugar prices in the market, the suspect TTL or Thomas Trikasih Lembong as Minister of Trade has issued import approval for raw crystal sugar to 9 private companies," said Qohar.

Based on the results of the audit of the calculation of state financial losses carried out by the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP) on January 20, 2025, the total state loss in the case was Rp 578.1 billion. Thus, there is a difference of Rp 12.7 billion or more than the amount returned to investigators by the 9 suspects.

According to Qohar, the difference in losses occurred in 2016, when the Minister of Trade was not Tom Lembong. Thus, the losses were not charged to the suspects. However, Qohar ensured that there was still the possibility of other suspects in this case. "If there is sufficient evidence, it means there are two pieces of evidence," said Qohar.

Regarding the flow of money to suspect Tom Lembong, Qohar did not answer it. According to Qohar, whether or not there is a flow of money can be witnessed by the public in front of the trial. According to the plan, this week Tom Lembong's case files will be immediately submitted to the court.

Qohar ensured that even though the suspects returned the state's financial losses, it did not erase the perpetrators' criminal penalties at all. "This means that even though there is a return of losses that are clearly caused by the perpetrator's actions, the legal process will continue," he said.

Head of the Attorney General's Office's Legal Information Center Harli Siregar added that the legal process handled by the Attorney General's Office is not only focused on handling the perpetrators, but is also followed by efforts to recover state financial losses. The confiscation of the money is one of the efforts so that state financial recovery in the case can be maximized.