Salman Mardira, Jakarta – The Supreme Court has overturned the acquittals of three major palm oil conglomerates in a high-profile corruption case involving crude palm oil (CPO) export permits, reinstating their criminal liability after prosecutors won an appeal.
The court found Permata Hijau Group, Wilmar Group, and Musim Mas Group guilty of corruption, reversing a lower court's decision that had cleared them of all charges. The verdict, issued on Sept. 15 and published Thursday, followed a cassation petition filed by state prosecutors.
"The appeal by the public prosecutor is granted," the judgment excerpts stated on the court's website. The ruling was delivered by presiding justice Dwiarso Budi Santiarto, along with justices Agustinus Purnomo Hadi and Achmad Setyo Pudjoharsoyo.
The companies were accused of breaching a temporary CPO export ban imposed by then-President Joko Widodo in 2022 during a nationwide cooking oil shortage. Prosecutors said the illegal exports cost the state Rp 18.3 trillion ($1.1 billion), as the government had to subsidize domestic cooking oil prices heavily to ease the crisis.
The Central Jakarta District Court had acquitted the firms earlier this year, in a decision led by judge Djuyamto. But the Attorney General's Office later alleged that ruling was marred by bribery. Djuyamto and two other judges – Ali Muhtarom and Agam Syarief Baharuddin – were accused of taking Rp 21.9 billion ($1.3 million) in bribes to deliver the favorable verdict.
They were indicted alongside former Central Jakarta deputy chief judge Muhammad Arif Nuryanta and North Jakarta court registrar Wahyu Gunawan, who allegedly shared in a Rp 40 billion ($2.6 million) payoff.
Court documents show the payments were made in two stages through lawyers representing the palm oil firms. Djuyamto allegedly received more than Rp 9.5 billion, while Agam and Ali were each paid over Rp 6 billion.
The lawyers identified in the case include Ariyanto, Marcella Santoso, Junaedi Saibih, and Syafei, who prosecutors said acted on behalf of the corporate defendants.
Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/supreme-court-reverses-acquittals-of-wilmar-musim-mas-and-permata-hija