Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Djoko’s financial affairs to be probed as corruption trial begins

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Hot seat: Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo attends his indictment at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday. Prosecutors charged him with corruption and money laundering when he served as the National Police Traffic Corps commander in 2011. (JP/Ricky Yudhistira) 
Hot seat: Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo attends his indictment at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday. Prosecutors charged him with corruption and money laundering when he served as the National Police Traffic Corps commander in 2011. (JP/Ricky Yudhistira)

The trial of Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo began at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday over his role in the driving simulator graft case.

Prosecutors from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) have accused Djoko — the first senior police general to be indicted by the antigraft agency — of colluding with several parties to benefit from the Rp 200 billion (US$20.6 million) project to procure driving simulators while he headed the National Police Traffic Corps (Korlantas).

Djoko inflated the budget for the project from Rp 98 billion to about Rp 200 billion, the prosecutors said. He stands accused of embezzling Rp 32 billion of the project’s funds to enrich himself.

“Didik and Budi received Rp 50 million and Rp 93.3 billion, respectively, while Bambang received Rp 4 billion,” lead prosecutor KMS A Rony said, referring to Brig. Gen. Didik Purnomo, the former deputy chief at Korlantas; Budi Susanto, the director of the firm that won the project tender; and Sukotjo S. Bambang, director of the firm that was subcontracted by Budi.

The stolen public money allegedly went to other police institutions, including the Korlantas cooperative (Rp 15 billion) and the general supervision inspectorate (Rp 1.5 billion), which was then led by deputy National Police chief Comr. Gen. Nanan Sukarna. Rp 1 billion from the project’s budget was also used by the police to fund its soccer team, Bhayangkara.

“Their wrongdoings cost Rp 145 billion in state losses,” Rony said.

Djoko was slapped with corruption and money-laundering charges and could be sentenced to 20 years in prison if found guilty.

The prosecutors decided to split the money-laundering charges into two, one for Djoko’s alleged money laundering from 2010 to 2012, and the other one for 2002 until 2010. The KPK said that Djoko allegedly amassed a whopping Rp 43 billion in assets as well as Rp 15 billion in cash from selling some of his assets from October 2010 to 2012.

His assets came in multiple forms, including properties with a total area of 2,640 square meter, six buses, one car and three gas stations.

His salary as a police general was around Rp 100 million per year in 2010 and 2011, but income from his property and jewelry-trading business brought in Rp 960 million per year, according to the prosecutors. “Besides that, the defendant did not have any other legal source of income,” they said.

The prosecutors added that Djoko had purchased those assets using the names of his relatives, including his three wives, Suratmi, Mahdiana and Dipta Anindita.

Djoko has three children with Suratmi, whom he married in 1985. He has another two children with his second wife, Mahdiana, whom he married in 2001. “From his marriage to Dipta, he has one child,” they said.

Dipta, a former Putri Solo, was only 19 when in 2008 she married Djoko, who was 48 at the time. His three wives were nowhere to be seen during the hearing, while dozens of police officers safeguarded the court.

Prior to 2010, Djoko allegedly collected Rp 54 billion in assets, while his salaries from his various positions with the police, such as North Jakarta Police chief and Jakarta Police traffic division head, ranged from
Rp 40 million to Rp 90 million per year.

After the lengthy indictment was read out, Djoko, who wore a blue batik uniform, said he did not understand the charges, to which presiding judge Suhartoyo replied in a stern voice, “you don’t understand such simple language? Don’t pretend that you don’t understand”.

Djoko and his team of more than 20 lawyers are scheduled to read their defense next Tuesday.

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