Antara news agency reported on Tuesday that the regent’s lawyer Maqdir Ismail revealed that Muara Enim Public Works and Housing Agency head Elvyn Muchtar, one of the suspects in the corruption case, had tried to give US$35,000 to Firli, who was serving as South Sumatra Police chief at the time of the case.

The revelation was part of the rebuttal statement during a hearing at the Palembang Corruption Court in Palembang, South Sumatra. Maqdir said the regent did not demand an unlawful commitment fee of Rp 22 billion ($1.5 million) from businessman Robi Pahlevi — who is also standing trial in the same case.

He also argued that the commitment fee was an initiative from Elvyn who was responsible for 16 project packages with a total value of Rp 132 billion.

The bribery case against Ahmad began in September, when KPK investigators arrested Ahmad, Elvyn and Robi in Muara Enim for alleged bribery in relation to projects in 2019.

The antigraft agency alleged Ahmad had accepted Rp 13.4 billion from Robi as a 10 percent commitment fee for road construction projects.

Maqdir said Elvyn tried to take advantage of the relationship between Ahmad and Firli to give the police chief the illicit money in August.

After obtaining the money from Robi, the agency head called Firli’s nephew, Erlan, to inform him about the illicit money for the police general.

“However, Erlan replied: ‘I will tell him later, but he usually refuses to accept this kind of money’,” Maqdir said, reading out the plea, as quoted by Antara.

The conversation, however, was eavesdropped on by graft busters, who did nothing about the findings, Maqdir claimed.

“The investigation report only included the conversation between Elvyn and Robi that Elvyn would give some of the illicit money to Firli.

“However, investigators never questioned Firli whether he accepted the money,” the lawyer went on to say.

Maqdir added that the KPK had broken their own protocols by not notifying the National Police chief regarding such a finding, as both institutions have a cooperation agreement regarding supervision of corruption case investigations.

Apart from defending his client and describing the indictment against Ahmad as incorrect, Maqdir also claimed that the investigation report as well as the indictment letter against the suspended regent were made to damage Firli’s image during the selection of the new KPK chairman.

“Media reports, especially those published by Tempo magazine, show there were efforts to prevent Firli from becoming the new chairman. They [the previous KPK commissioners] should just accept the fact that Firli was selected as the new chairman rather than smearing him,” Maqdir said.

Firli dismissed the allegation, asserting that he did not accept anything from anyone while serving as South Sumatra Police chief.

“I have also told my family not to accept any gifts. I always reject anyone who tries to give me something,” the KPK chairman said.

Acting KPK spokesperson Ali Fikri echoed Firli, saying the defendant had actually dismissed the allegation of bribery against the then-South Sumatra Police chief. He also dismissed the suggestion that the KPK supervisory council would question Firli about the allegation.

This case is the second time Firli has been linked with graft cases. He was previously alleged to have violated the antigraft body’s code of ethics for meeting then-West Nusa Tenggara governor M. Zainul Majdi, also known as Tuan Guru Bajang (TGB), in September 2018, when the governor was being questioned as a witness in a corruption case pertaining to the divestment of gold and copper mining company PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara.

The ethical probe against Firli was never completed because then-National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian requested the antigraft body to send Firli back, as the force wished to appoint him as South Sumatra Police chief.

Only a day prior to a hearing in the House of Representatives to select new KPK commissioners the KPK revealed that an internal investigation led by the commission’s internal supervisory board between September and December 2018 against the policeman concluded that he had made “gross violations”. (kuk)

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