Indonesia to recover $81.7 million in stolen assets from Hong Kong

The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is set to recover assets of A$90.3 million (US$81.7 million) in Hong Kong that were siphoned away by late corruption convict Hendra Rahardja.

Deputy Attorney General Mochtar Arifin, who also heads the Corruptor Hunter Team, said here Tuesday the stolen assets would be returned to Indonesia through the Australian government.

He said the recovery was facilitated by the New South Wales Supreme Court in Australia, which had ordered the South East Group in Hong Kong to hand over Hendra's assets to Australia.

"We're now waiting for the return of the assets. We've sent our bank account to the Australian government," Mochtar was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.

The Australian government had earlier asked the Indonesian government to open a bank account to collect Hendra's assets. The Justice and Human Rights Ministry responded by opening an account at state-owned Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI).

The Central Jakarta District Court sentenced Hendra, former president commissioner of PT Bank Harapan Sentosa (BHS), to life imprisonment in March 2002. He was proven guilty of misappropriation of Bank Indonesia Liquidity Support (BLBI) funds worth Rp 1.95 trillion (US$211.3 million) at an in absentia trial.

Hendra reportedly fled to Australia to avoid the punishment. He died in Sydney in 2003.

As of 2004, Indonesia had recovered only A$642,000 of Hendra's assets from Australia.

The government is also asking the Swiss government to freeze the US$14.9 million in a Swiss bank account belonging to former Bank Mandiri president director ECW Neloe.

Neloe has been sentenced to 10 years in jail and fined Rp 500 million or an extra six months in jail.

Mochtar said Indonesia had a mutual legal assistance treaty with Switzerland in attempts to recover Neloe's assets.

Indonesia managed to freeze assets worth US$9.9 million in Switzerland belonging to former president director of Global Bank Irawan Salim.

The country is also in the process of recovering assets worth $100 million belonging to the son of the late former president Soeharto, Hutomo Mandala Putra, which are in an account of the London branch of Bank Nationale de Paris Paribas.