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Jakarta Post

Court extends prison term for ex-BI chief

The Jakarta High Court has extended by six months former Bank Indonesia governor Burhanuddin Abdullah's prison sentence for his role in the misappropriation in 2003 of Rp 100 billion (US$8

Irawaty Wardany (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Tue, February 10, 2009

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Court extends prison term for ex-BI chief

T

he Jakarta High Court has extended by six months former Bank Indonesia governor Burhanuddin Abdullah's prison sentence for his role in the misappropriation in 2003 of Rp 100 billion (US$8.55 million) of the central bank's money.

"The high court has sentenced Burhanuddin to five-and-a-half years, a heavier sentence due to his prominent status as a former BI governor, a role that should have set an example for the people," said judge Madya Suharja.

The Corruption Court had previously sentenced Abdullah to five years' imprisonment after finding him "legally and convincingly guilty of committing collective fraud" with other members of the BI board of governors, BI former legal bureau head Oey Hoey Tiong and former communications head Rusli Simanjuntak.

Oey and Rusli have also been jailed in the case, while the quartet of former deputy BI governors - Bun Bunan Hutapea, Aslim Tadjuddin, Maman Husein Somantri and Aulia Pohan, the father-in-law of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's son - are now standing trial.

Abdullah was said to have known about and approved the disbursement of BI's Indonesian Banking Development Foundation (YPPI) fund.

The money was used for personal and family expenses, including buying homes and opening savings accounts, in addition to halting investigations by the Attorney General's Office into the BI Liquidity Assistance (BLBI) cases involving five former senior BI officials - Paul Sutopo, Hendro Budiyanto and Heru Soepraptomo, Iwan R. Prawiranata and Soedradjad Djiwandono.

The former officials have remained off the hook.

The remaining Rp 31.5 billion of the YPPI money was allegedly given to members of the House of Representatives' then Commission IX, which oversaw financial affairs, to expedite the settlement of the BLBI cases and the amendment of the 1999 BI law.

Earlier this year, former legislators Hamka Yandhu and Antony Zeidra Abidin were sentenced to three and four-and-a-half years in jail, respectively, for accepting bribes from Oey and Rusli.

The high court also ruled Monday that Burhanuddin pay a fine of Rp 250 million.

Madya said the court had not considered increasing the fine or obliging him to pay restitution to the state, because Burhanuddin had not personally benefited from the YPPI money.

Burhanuddin's lawyer M. Assegaf said he would consider an appeal, adding he had not yet received a copy of the verdict.

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