ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA — Indonesian prosecutors have named three suspects in an alleged corruption scheme that authorities say enabled the illegal export of approximately 390 tons of ilmenite containing Rare Earth Elements (REE), a strategic mineral resource subject to strict export controls.
The Attorney General’s Office (AGO), through its Directorate of Special Crimes (JAM PIDSUS), announced that the investigation concerns the alleged mismanagement of non-metallic mineral mining activities involving PT PMM between 2018 and 2026.
The suspects are identified as IS, a representative of PT PMM; GP, Head of PT Sucofindo’s Pangkalpinang Service Unit; and JK, Head of the Pangkalpinang Type C Customs and Excise Office.
Investigators examined 18 witnesses during the probe and seized documents and electronic evidence under court-approved warrants, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
Prosecutors allege that IS requested GP not to conduct comprehensive laboratory testing on ilmenite samples submitted for export certification. Instead, investigators claim that only the upper portion of the bulk material was tested, preventing the identification of Rare Earth Elements contained within the shipments.
According to the Attorney General’s Office, laboratory reports were subsequently manipulated to indicate that the ilmenite met export specifications while omitting any reference to Rare Earth Elements. Those reports allegedly became the basis for issuing export documents.
Investigators further allege that GP was aware the material contained Rare Earth Elements—minerals considered strategically important and prohibited from export under Indonesian regulations—but nevertheless complied with requests to exclude those findings from the laboratory reports.
The investigation also implicates JK, who prosecutors allege approved export procedures despite receiving information from government laboratory analyses indicating that the shipments contained Rare Earth Elements. Authorities allege that export clearance was ultimately granted using survey reports that failed to disclose the REE content.
The Attorney General’s Office estimates that the alleged scheme enabled the illegal export of approximately 390 tons of ilmenite containing Rare Earth Elements, generating unlawful financial benefits for PT PMM. The total financial losses to the state are still being calculated by government auditors.
The three suspects have been charged under Indonesia’s Anti-Corruption Law and related provisions of the Criminal Code. They have been placed in detention for an initial period of 20 days while investigators continue to develop the case.
The case comes as Indonesia strengthens oversight of its critical minerals industry, a sector that has gained increasing global importance amid rising demand for materials essential to electric vehicles, renewable energy technologies, advanced manufacturing, and defense applications.
The investigation underscores Jakarta’s broader efforts to improve governance, reinforce export compliance, and safeguard strategic mineral resources that are becoming increasingly significant in global supply chains. (AT Network)
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