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n an unprecedented move, the Jakarta Corruption Court has declared publicly listed construction company PT Duta Graha Indah (DGI) — now PT Nusa Konstruksi Enjiniring (NKE) — guilty in a graft case involving several construction projects, including a state university hospital in Bali and the Jakabaring Athletes Village, upgraded for the 2018 Asian Games, in Palembang, South Sumatra.

The court also ordered NKE, the first business entity to be indicted for and found guilty of corruption, to pay a fine of Rp 700 million (US$48,631) and Rp 85.4 billion in restitution to the state. “[We] declare PT Nusa Konstruksi Enjinering, or previously known as PT Duta Graha Indah, legally and convincingly proven guilty of corruption,” presiding judge Siti Diah Basaria said on Thursday afternoon.

NKE is the first company found guilty of corruption in the country’s history since the 2016 Supreme Court regulation on directives in managing corporate crime, which paved the way for law enforcement authorities to prosecute companies for crimes, including corruption.

The judicial panel declared that NKE had received illicit moneys totaling Rp 240.09 billion from eight construction projects through rigged tenders with the help of former lawmaker Muhammad Nazaruddin.

Among the projects embroiled in the case are the construction of state university hospitals at Udayana University in Bali and Mataram University in West Nusa Tenggara, a training center in East Java, the Jakabaring Athletes Village in Palembang, South Sumatra, and a regional hospital in Sungai Dareh, West Sumatra.

Some Rp 87 billion of the projects’ combined profit of Rp 239.9 billion was given to the state, while around Rp 67.5 billion was channeled to Nazaruddin in “fees”. The judges therefore ordered NKE to pay Rp 85.4 billion in restitution within a month from the ruling.

“Should the company fail to fulfil the order, we will confiscate its asset for auctioning,” Siti added.

NKE president director Joko Eko Suprastowo, who was present at the verdict and sentencing, said the company accepted the court’s ruling and did not plan to appeal. “I, as the company’s representative, fully accept the [court’s] decision,” Joko told the court.

The sentence was lighter than the prosecutors’ demands. In the previous hearing, Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) prosecutor Lie Setiawan demanded that the company be fined Rp 1 billion and pay Rp 188.7 billion in restitution.

Several individuals who have been convicted in connection with the case include Nazaruddin, former NKE president director Dudung Purwadi, former Udayana University finance head Made Meregawa and businessman Marisi Matondang for rigging the project tenders.

Dadang Trisasongko of Transparency International Indonesia, however, lauded the ruling, particularly because it also banned NKE from undertaking any government project over the next six months.

“This is a step forward in the antigraft campaign,” he said, attributing the success to the KPK — which has been adamant in prosecuting the company to maximize the recovery of state assets.

The KPK has been stepping up its game in holding companies responsible for corruption and money laundering to account since the Supreme Court issued a 2016 decree enabling the KPK to prosecute graft-tainted companies.

The KPK has since investigated four companies for their alleged involvement in corporate crime, including NKE.

In April 2018, the KPK named state-owned construction firm PT Nindya Karya and private company PT Tuah Sejati suspects for their alleged role in the botched construction of a loading dock in Sabang’s free trade area in Aceh.

A month later, the KPK moved to name PT Putra Ramadhan a suspect of money laundering, accusing it of using the names of five different companies to take part in procurement projects in Central Java’s Kebumen regency between 2016 and 2017.