Corruption in Indonesia: Emirsyah Satar Named Suspect in Bribery Case
Former Garuda Indonesia CEO Emirsyah Satar, who currently serves as Chairman of Lippo Group's MatahariMall.com, was named a suspect in a corruption case by Indonesia's anti-corruption watchdog known as the KPK (Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi). KPK spokesman Febri Diansyah said the corruption case involves a bribery case that is linked to several parties in a number of countries. The agency will give a press conference to share more details later on Thursday (19/01).
Indonesian national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia issued a statement in which it said the case is related to individual actions, not to corporate actions of the airline. Garuda Indonesia emphasized it is fully cooperating in the investigation. On Thursday (19/01) shares of the airline fell 2.26 percent to IDR 346 a piece. Shares of Matahari Department Store, which owns MatahariMall.com, rose 1.36 percent to IDR 14,900 a piece on Thursday.
In Indonesian media it is mentioned that Emirsyah Satar is suspected of receiving a bribe from Rolls Royce, hence suggesting it involves Garuda Indonesia's purchase of 14 A330-900neo aircraft engines from UK-based Rolls Royce. Febri Diansyah informed this latest corruption case is a big one, spanning several countries and involving millions of US dollars.
Update:
At the press conference on Thursday (19/01) KPK Chairman Agus Rahardjo said there are indications that Emirsyah Satar received a big fee in Singapore and hid these funds in Singapore (where Satar opened a new bank account) from Indonesia's Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (in Indonesian: Pusat Pelaporan dan Analisis Transaksi Keuangan, or PPATK)
Read more: Overview & Analysis of Corruption in Indonesia