July 25, 2009
Gayus Tambunan, a mid-ranking official in the tax directorate whose job is to verify complaints from taxpayers, is named a money-laundering suspect, based on the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) flagging a suspicious Rp 28 billion ($3.1 million) held in his bank accounts.
Sept. 27, 2009
His lawyer, Haposan Hutagalung, arranges a meeting between Gayus and businessman Andi Kosasih where they agree to set up a bogus business deal to cover-up Gayus's assets, at that time frozen by police. In an agreement doctored to date back to May 26, 2008, Gayus receives $2.8 million from Andi to help the businessman buy land and a shop in North Jakarta. Andi asks police to unfreeze "his money" in the taxman's accounts.
Nov. 26, 2009
Police order Bank Panin and Bank BCA to lift the freeze on Gayus's accounts.
March 12, 2010
The Tangerang District Court acquits Gayus, as prosecutors drop the money-laundering and corruption charges and demand only probation for a minor embezzlement charge unrelated to his bank accounts.
March 18, 2010
Former chief of detectives Susno Duadji implicates two police generals, Edmon Ilyas and Raja Erisman, of acting as "case brokers" in Gayus's case.
March 22, 2010
Prosecutor Cirus Sinaga, believed to be the key figure behind the taxman's March acquittal, denies fabricating Gayus's case and threatens to sue Susno for libel, but the plan never materializes.
March 24, 2010
Gayus leaves for Singapore as the National Police and the Attorney General's Office are widely criticized over his case.
March 31, 2010
Gayus returns to Jakarta after surrendering to police, who immediately re-name him a suspect.
Sept. 8, 2010
The second trial of Gayus begins in the South Jakarta District Court but prosecutors again don't pursue the sources of his suspicious fortune. The defendant had repeatedly claimed he received Rp 35 billion from three Bakrie Group companies – Kaltim Prima Coal, Bumi Resources and Arutmin – in exchange for helping them ease tax obligations. Gayus is charged with bribing law enforcers and misusing authority in his handling the tax case of Surya Alam Tunggal, a small private company.
Nov. 5, 2010
Gayus, who is supposed to be behind bars at the Mobile Brigade (Brimob) detention facility in Depok, is photographed by the Jakarta Globe as he watches an international tennis tournament in Bali, disguised in a wig and glasses.
Nov. 11, 2010
Nine officers from Brimob are named suspects for the Bali trip scandal.
Dec. 22, 2010
Prosecutors recommend a 20-year sentence for Gayus, the maximum punishment for bribery, citing no mitigating factors and describing him as having exploited weaknesses in the taxation system for personal gain.
Jan. 3, 2011
Gayus lashes back at prosecutors and police, saying they know nothing about tax issues and they don't have the guts to pursue the bigger criminals in the case.
Jan. 4, 2010
Justice Minister Patrialis Akbar says Gayus has traveled to Macau and Kuala Lumpur using a fake passport under the alias Sony Laksono between Sept. 24 and 26. The passport photo bears a striking resemblance to Gayus's Bali disguise.
Jan. 7, 2010
Gayus admits to traveling to those destinations with his wife, Milana Anggraeni.
Jan. 10, 2010
In his final defense, Gayus half-jokingly says he wants to become an expert assistant to the National Police chief, the attorney general or the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman and promises that with his help, "within two years Indonesia will be clean."
Jan. 19, 2010
The South Jakarta District Court sentenced Gayus Tambunan to seven years in jail.
However, the much-awaited verdict was limited to the scope of the indictment prepared by the prosecutors, and did not touch on the source of Gayus's illicit multibillion rupiah wealth.
Gayus was found guilty of bribing a judge and law enforcers that led to his acquittal last March in his first, controversial trial in Tangerang, in which the prosecution dropped the money laundering and corruption charges and went on only with a minor embezzlement charge unrelated to his huge bank accounts. – Heru Andrianto