Politician gets 15 years in prison for graft

JAKARTA: An Indonesian court sentenced a senior politician to 15 years in prison for his role in the theft of US$170mil (RM664mil) in public money by officials, a victory for anti-corruption police fighting the country’s rampant graft.

Setya Novanto (pic), the former speaker of parliament and former chairman of the Golkar party, sat impassively as the guilty verdict and sentence were announced at the Jakarta Corruption Court.

Prosecutors said Novanto was among about 80 officials who used the introduction of a US$440mil (RM1.71mil) electronic identity card system in 2011 and 2012 to steal more than a third of the funds.

During the trial, Novanto denied any wrongdoing while also using his knowledge of the conspiracy to accuse other senior politicians in an unsuccessful attempt to gain leniency as an informant. — AP