KPK Names Former North Maluku Governor Abdul Ghani Kasuba as Money Laundering Suspect

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) investigation team named former North Maluku governor Abdul Ghani Kasuba as a suspect in the alleged money laundering case worth up to Rp100 billion. KPK spokesman Ali Fikri said investigators had found enough evidence to support allegations that Abdul Ghani laundered money during his tenure as governor.

Ali stated that the initial evidence of the alleged crime was the purchase and attempt to conceal the origin of ownership of economically valuable assets in the name of another person, with an initial value believed to be around Rp100 billion.

"The investigation team has also examined witnesses and confiscated several assets of economic value in an effort to fulfill the alleged elements of the money laundering article," he said at the KPK building in Jakarta on May 8.

The KPK had also named Abdul Gani Kasuba as a suspect in the case of alleged bribery in projects involving the procurement of goods and services and the granting of permits within the North Maluku provincial government.

The anti-graft body arrested Abdul Ghani Kasuba and five other suspects. They are Adnan Hasanudin, head of the technical service of the North Maluku Housing and Settlement Agency; Daud Ismail, head of the technical service of the Maluku Public Works and Spatial Planning Agency; Ridwan Arsan, head of the North Maluku Goods and Services Procurement Agency; Ramadhan Ibrahim, assistant to the governor; and Stevi Thomas and Kristian Wuisan, private individuals.

Abdul Ghani Kasuba and the other suspects allegedly committed the crime in the procurement of goods and services using the regional government's budget. The former governor, with the help of Daud Ismail and Ridwan Arsan, determined which contractor would win the auction for the construction project.

From these projects, Abdul Ghani then determined the amount to be paid by the contractors. He also asked Adnan Hasanudin, Daud Ismail, and Ridwan Arsan to manipulate the progress of the work as if it were more than 50 percent complete so that the budget could be disbursed immediately.

Stevi Thomas and Kristian Wuisan were the contractors who told the government officials that they could give money in exchange for winning the projects. Both gave money to Abdul Ghani through Ridwa Arsan to "deal with" the processing of road permits for his company.

Investigators found that about Rp 2.2 billion had been transferred to a number of different accounts. Some of the money was used for Abdul Ghani's personal interests, including hotel and dental bills.

TEMPO.CO

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