KEY POINTS
- Hery Susanto denied receiving alleged bribes linked to nickel mining corruption.
- He disputed claims involving payments of up to 1 billion rupiah.
- Prosecutors are seeking a five-and-a-half-year prison sentence
Former Indonesian Ombudsman chairman Hery Susanto has denied receiving money from Agung Winarno, Lukman Malanuang and other individuals allegedly linked to a corruption case involving nickel mining management.
Hery made the denials while reading his defence plea at Indonesia’s Corruption Court on Thursday, October 8, 2026. He maintained that he had neither received the alleged payments nor promised anything to the individuals named in the case.
“I have not received a single penny and have never promised anything to Lukman Malanuang or Agung Winarno,” Hery said during the proceedings.
His defence focused on challenging several allegations that he received money through intermediaries in connection with the alleged corruption in Indonesia’s nickel mining sector.
Disputes alleged payments of hundreds of millions of rupiah
Hery denied receiving 200 million rupiah from PT DSM, which prosecutors alleged was transferred through Lukman Malanuang and Agung Winarno.
He questioned the credibility of the allegation, arguing that the timeline did not support the claim. According to Hery, the alleged transaction dated to 2023, while Lukman only became acquainted with Agung in 2025.
Hery also cited Agung’s testimony in court, claiming that Agung had denied delivering the money to him.
The former Ombudsman chief further rejected allegations that he received 525 million rupiah from Agung Winarno and 50 million rupiah from an individual identified as Rojai.
According to Hery, both Agung and Rojai had disputed the claims during court proceedings.
Hery also denied other alleged payments attributed to Agung Winarno, including sums of 200 million rupiah, 250 million rupiah, 275 million rupiah and 1 billion rupiah.
He specifically challenged an allegation that Agung had channelled 1 billion rupiah to him through Edi Sugandi, describing the claim as false and saying Agung had denied it in court.
However, Hery offered a separate explanation for an alleged 200 million rupiah transaction involving Agung Winarno, Alkindi and Edi Sugandi.
