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No evidence of graft in Tangerang sea barrier case: Bareskrim
The Bareskrim says no evidence has been found to indicate that the illegal structure has incurred losses to the state, but that the National Police’s new antigraft corps is looking into possible corruption involving two Kohod village officials who are embroiled in a separate case of document fraud.
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Members of the Indonesian Navy's elite Frogman Command remove a section of an illegal sea barrier on Jan. 22, 2025, in the waters off Tanjung Pasir, Tangerang regency, Banten. (Antara/Muhammad Iqbal)
T
he National Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) says that no evidence has been found to support a corruption charge in the case of the 30-kilometer illegal sea barrier installed in the waters of Tangerang regency, Banten.
The announcement comes after the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) returned the Bareskrim’s case file naming four suspects, including Kohod village head Arsin and secretary Ujang Karta, who were alleged of forging right to build (HGB) permits and ownership certificates (SHM) for coastal land opposite the makeshift bamboo fence.
Prosecutors had instructed police investigators to also charge the suspects with document fraud and accepting illicit gratuities and bribery under the Anticorruption Law, in addition to the Criminal Code, as the AGO had found indications of potential abuse of power leading to state losses.
Based on insights from experts and the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), however, the Bareskrim concluded there was no evidence of state losses, an essential element in a corruption charge as mandated by a 2016 Constitutional Court ruling.
According to Bareskrim general crimes director Brig. Gen. Djuhandhani Rahardjo Puro, local fishers were the only victims of financial losses discovered so far.
The Indonesian Ombudsman estimated that some 4,000 local fishers had suffered income losses of at least Rp 24 billion (US$1.4 million), excluding the cost of repairing their fishing boats damaged by the sea barrier, due to the structure restricting their access to the sea.
“We have reviewed the AGO’s instructions thoroughly and concluded that this is not a corruption case,” Djuhandhani said on Thursday, as quoted by Tempo.co.
