PALEMBANG— Investigators from the Special Crimes Division of the South Sumatra High Prosecutor’s Office have named two individuals as suspects in a case of alleged obstruction of justice related to the development and management of village-level communication and information network installations at the Department of Community and Village Empowerment (DPMD) of Musi Banyuasin Regency for the 2019–2023 fiscal years.
The two suspects are identified as RC, a Special Staff to the Regent of Musi Banyuasin and former Head of DPMD Muba from October 2018 to June 2023, and RS, an advocate.
The Head of Legal Information Section (Kasi Penkum) of the South Sumatra Prosecutor’s Office stated that the suspects were named after investigators obtained sufficient evidence.
“The investigative team has gathered sufficient evidence, therefore the status of the individuals has been elevated from witnesses to suspects in the alleged obstruction of justice case,” he said.
He explained that one of the suspects, RS, has been detained for the next 20 days at the Class I State Detention Center in Palembang, starting from April 28, 2026 until May 17, 2026. Meanwhile, suspect RC is currently serving a sentence in another case.
“Suspect RS has been detained for 20 days, while RC is currently a convicted person in another case,” he added.
In the course of the investigation, the team has examined at least 13 witnesses to strengthen the case construction.
Furthermore, it was explained that the modus operandi of the suspects involved jointly creating a scenario to influence witnesses not to provide truthful statements before investigators.
“The suspects are alleged to have jointly created a scenario by gathering witnesses to prevent them from giving truthful statements, so that the actual facts would not be revealed,” he emphasized.
The suspects are charged under Article 21 or Article 22 of Law Number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Corruption Crimes as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001, in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) point 1 of the Criminal Code.
This case is a development of a previous obstruction of justice case handled in 2025. (dit/cht)
