Investigators Collect New Facts on Alleged Tin Corruption in Bangka

The Attorney General's Office continues to collect new facts regarding alleged corruption in five tin smelters managed by PT Timah.

KOMPAS/ADRIAN FAJRIANSYAH

The evidence related to the alleged corruption case of tin management, which consists of 51 excavator units and three bulldozer units, was presented to the Bangka-Belitung High Prosecutor's Office in Pangkal Pinang, Bangka Island, on Tuesday (23/4/2024).

PANGKAL PINANG, KOMPAS — Investigators from the Indonesian Attorney General's Office continue to collect new facts to develop cases of alleged corruption in the management of tin in business permit areas PT Timah mining 2015-2022 which caused losses to the state of IDR 271 trillion. Investigators named 16 suspects, examined 148 witnesses, and confiscated the assets of five tin smelters related to the case.

"Currently, investigators are still gathering (new) facts related to the development of this case," said Secretary of the Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes at the Attorney General's Office Andi Herman, answering questions from media crew after the press conference regarding the results of the Cross-Sector Coordination Meeting regarding "Follow-up to the Confiscation of Five Tin Smelter on Bangka Island” at the Bangka-Belitung Governor's Office, Pangkal Pinang, Bangka Island, Tuesday (23/4/2024).

Present at the meeting were representatives of the Attorney General's Office, the Ministry of BUMN, the Director of Utama PT Timah, and the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP). There are also members of the Bangka-Belitung Regional Leadership Coordination Forum, such as the Acting Governor of Bangka-Belitung, the Head of the Bangka-Belitung Regional Police, and officials from the Indonesian Army, Navy and Air Force in Bangka-Belitung.

KOMPAS/ADRIAN FAJRIANSYAH

The Deputy Secretary of the Attorney General's Office for Special Crimes at the Attorney General's Office, Andi Herman, gave a press statement after a Cross-Sectoral Coordination Meeting on the "Follow-up Action on the Confiscation of Five Tin Smelters on Bangka Island" at the Governor's Office of Bangka Belitung, Pangkal Pinang, Bangka Island on Tuesday (23/4/2024).

Andi stated that the Attorney General's investigators have named 15 suspects directly involved in the alleged corruption case of tin management, as well as one suspect who attempted to obstruct the investigation. All suspects have been named gradually since October 2023.

A number of the suspects are well-known people. They include Central Bangka tin entrepreneur Tamron alias Aon, a woman nicknamed crazy rich Pantai Indah Kapuk Helena Lim, and artist Sandra Dewi's husband, Harvey Moeis. "Apart from that, we have examined 148 witnesses related to this case," said Andi.

Also read: Five Confiscated Tin Smelters will be Managed by the State

He hopes that all parties involved in handling the case will cooperate so that everything runs smoothly, including those who are not directly involved. Otherwise, they risk facing criminal sanctions. This is reflected in the case of one person who was not directly involved but was eventually named a suspect.

PUSPENKUM KEJAKSAAN AGUNG

Results of mapping and analysis of illegal tin mines carried out by Attorney General investigators.

A party can face criminal charges if they obstruct the investigation process of a case. So, it's his own loss.

According to reports from Kompas.id on February 6, 2024, the suspect who allegedly obstructed the investigation of the case is Toni Tamsil. He obstructed the investigation by closing and locking the door of the object to be searched and hiding several necessary documents. In addition, he intentionally did not provide accurate information or gave false information as a witness. He is also strongly suspected of tampering with electronic evidence.

"Although not directly related to criminal acts, according to applicable laws, a party may be threatened with criminal charges for obstructing the process of investigating a case. So, they would suffer the consequences themselves. However, they are not directly involved in the related criminal act," said Andi.

Five smelters confiscated

In addition, Andi stated that his party has seized assets from five smelters or mining processing facilities related to the case. From the cross-sector coordination meeting, these five smelters will be managed by the state through the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN). "All sides have agreed, so it is only a matter of finalizing the next mechanism with several related parties," he said.

Also read: AGO Targets Tin Mining Money Laundering Including Company Assets

Based on data compiled by Kompas, the five smelters are CV VIP in the form of a plot of land covering an area of ​​10,500 square meters, PT SIP in the form of several lands with a total area of ​​85,863 square meters, PT TI in the form of several lands (84,660 square meters), and PT SBS in the form of several lands (57,825 square meters). The four smelters are in Pangkal Pinang. Finally, PT RBT is a plot of land and several heavy equipment in Bangka Regency.

KOMPAS/ADRIAN FAJRIANSYAH

The Head of the Indonesian Attorney General's Asset Recovery Body, Amir Yanto, gave a press statement after the Cross-Sector Coordination Meeting related to the "Follow-up Action on the Seizure of Five Tin Smelters on Bangka Island" at the Governor's Office of Bangka-Belitung, Pangkal Pinang, Bangka Island, on Tuesday (23/4/2024).

The Head of the Asset Recovery Agency of the Attorney General, Amir Yanto, said that the purpose of managing the five smelters is to anticipate the decline in asset value and save the workers involved. These smelters have high asset value. If left idle, the asset value will plummet drastically to become just a pile of scrap metal.

"Later on, these smelters will still be managed so they will not be damaged and will continue to provide business opportunities or jobs for the Bangka Belitung community, where 30 percent of their livelihoods come from tin. Of course, this activity must be legal (official)," he said.

Also read: Losses in Tin Cases are Greater if Community Living Space is Taken into Account

Acting Governor of Bangka-Belitung, Safrizal ZA stated that the revelation of the alleged corruption case in tin management should be a momentum for improving the governance of tin mining or tin business in Bangka-Belitung. In addition to saving five smelters that provide employment opportunities for many residents, he also hopes that the central government will soon ensure the status of people's mining permits (IPR).

KOMPAS/ADRIAN FAJRIANSYAH

The impact of irresponsible tin mining on the environment, as seen in the photo taken from a Palembang-South Sumatra to Pangkal Pinang-Bangka Belitung route airplane on Tuesday (23/4/2024).

The management of tin in Bangka-Belitung is considered to be one of the solutions with IPR for legal purposes. So far, the Bangka-Belitung Provincial Government is still waiting for guidance or instructions from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources to issue technical instructions (juknis) for IPR.

"After the guidelines are released, we will form a team to issue IPRs in accordance with the criteria or indicators that we have developed. Of course, we will seek legal opinions and assistance from the Attorney General's Office to ensure that these efforts are truly in accordance with applicable procedures," said Safrizal.