Southeast Sulawesi governor detained for bribery

JAKARTA. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) detained Southeast Sulawesi Governor Nur Alam on Wednesday as a suspect in a bribery case related to several mining licenses.

KPK spokesman Febri Diansyah said the anti-graft body would hold Nur for the next 20 days at Guntur detention center. The arrest was made after investigators questioned him as suspect.

Nur was named as a suspect in August 2016 in an alleged corruption case involving several mining licenses granted in the province from 2009 to 2014, including the alleged abuse of authority in relation to a license given to PT AHD, which conducted illegal mining operations in Buton regency.

Nur’s lawyer Ahmad Rifai questioned the detention as he claimed Nur had denied receiving money in relation to the licenses. “It was clearly stated in the investigation report that the governor had yet to receive personal benefit from the licenses. Then, why did KPK detain the governor?”

In 2014, the Attorny General’s Office (AGO) handled an investigation into Nur’s allegedly inflated bank account based on a report from the Financial Transaction Report and Analysis Center (PPATK).