Indonesia’s anti-graft agency, the Corruption Eradication Commission (Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi, or KPK), staged an extraordinary series of operations on Thursday, 18 December 2025, conducting three separate sting operations (operasi tangkap tangan, or OTT) within roughly 24 hours. In total, at least 26 people were secured: 10 in Bekasi Regency, West Java, 6 in South Kalimantan, and 10 in an earlier operation targeting a prosecutor and associates in Banten. [KPK confirmed the three OTTs in Banten, Bekasi, and South Kalimantan on the same day, according to officials and multiple news reports.]
The most high-profile of Thursday’s stings unfolded in Bekasi Regency, an industrial and residential hub just east of Jakarta. KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo told reporters in Jakarta that investigators had "secured around ten people" in what the agency described as its 10th OTT of 2025. [KPK said it had apprehended about 10 individuals in the Bekasi Regency operation, and confirmed the sting as its 10th OTT this year.]
Investigators later moved to Bekasi’s government complex, sealing and searching the office of Bekasi Regent Ade Kuswara Kunang on Thursday night. The operation was still ongoing as of late evening local time, with officials declining to specify the roles of those detained or the precise nature of the alleged offense, which is believed to involve public procurement or licensing. [According to state news agency reports, KPK officers sealed the regent’s workspace while questioning several officials at the Bekasi Regency government office.]
Under Indonesia’s Code of Criminal Procedure (KUHAP), KPK has up to 24 hours after an OTT to examine those detained and decide whether to elevate them to suspect status, release them, or convert their status to that of witness. This legal framework is central to the agency’s "caught-in-the-act" model, where investigators move in only after they believe they have gathered enough preliminary evidence to justify emergency arrests. [KPK has repeatedly emphasized the 1×24-hour deadline in line with Indonesia’s criminal procedure code.]
As the Bekasi operation unfolded, another KPK team was active more than 1,000 kilometers away on the island of Borneo. In Hulu Sungai Utara Regency, South Kalimantan, KPK conducted what it called its 11th OTT of the year, detaining six individuals in the regional town of Amuntai. The sting prompted KPK to temporarily use facilities at the local police precinct to conduct initial questioning. [KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo confirmed that six people had been secured in the South Kalimantan operation, described as the commission’s 11th OTT in 2025.]
Details of the alleged scheme in South Kalimantan had not been made public by Thursday night. However, local police confirmed that their premises were being used by KPK investigators, suggesting that evidence collection and questioning were at an early stage. National outlets simultaneously reported that KPK was running coordinated operations in both Bekasi and South Kalimantan on 18 December 2025, underscoring the scale of the day’s activities.
Thursday’s Bekasi and South Kalimantan operations followed an earlier sting in Banten that targeted a prosecutor and several private-sector intermediaries. That operation, which began late Wednesday and continued into Thursday, reportedly netted nine suspects and roughly 900 million rupiah in seized cash—around US$57,000 at current exchange rates. [According to official briefings, KPK’s Banten OTT secured one prosecutor, two lawyers, six private individuals and around Rp900 million in cash as evidence.]
The string of actions prompted local media to describe the day as a "hat-trick" for the KPK, with the anti-graft body confirming that it had active investigations running in Banten, Bekasi, and South Kalimantan on the same date. One national outlet reported that three separate OTTs were announced on 18 December—first in Banten, then Bekasi, and finally in South Kalimantan.
The three stings are not isolated cases but form part of a wider 2025 enforcement campaign. By mid-December, KPK had carried out at least 11 OTTs nationwide, targeting local politicians, senior regional officials, and central government figures. Earlier this year, the commission arrested officials in Ogan Komering Ulu (South Sumatra), exposed alleged bribery in a North Sumatra road project, and detained regional leaders in Riau, Ponorogo (East Java), and Lampung Tengah, among others. [An official KPK chronology listed OTTs in South Sumatra, North Sumatra, Southeast Sulawesi, Jakarta, Riau, East Java, Lampung, Tangerang, and Bekasi as part of its 2025 docket.]
The pattern follows a longer-term trend. Since its establishment in 2002, KPK has relied heavily on OTTs to build high-profile cases and sustain public support. Academic studies of Indonesia’s anti-corruption drive have noted that these high-visibility arrests, often involving marked cash and controlled handovers, help counter public perceptions of impunity, especially when local law enforcement is seen as compromised. Research by Indonesian and international scholars has found that KPK’s enforcement model—combining surveillance, OTTs, and specialized courts—has contributed to higher conviction rates in grand corruption cases compared with ordinary law enforcement agencies.
The Bekasi and South Kalimantan operations highlight how local-level corruption can reverberate nationally. Bekasi Regency sits within the Greater Jakarta metropolitan area and hosts a dense concentration of industrial estates and urban developments. Alleged graft in such areas can affect land allocation, infrastructure spending, and business licensing across major supply chains.
South Kalimantan, meanwhile, is a key region for palm oil, mining, and logistics. Anti-corruption experts warn that systemic graft in resource-rich provinces can distort markets, reduce state revenues, and undermine environmental safeguards. Indonesia has frequently been cited as facing governance risks in natural resource sectors; transparency organizations have documented recurring issues in licensing, procurement, and project oversight at the provincial and district levels. Global indices continue to reflect these vulnerabilities. Indonesia scored 34 out of 100 points on the Corruption Perceptions Index 2024, ranking 115th out of 180 countries, suggesting persistent challenges despite two decades of reforms.
KPK’s burst of activity comes amid an ongoing debate over the institution’s powers and independence. Legislative changes in recent years have clipped some of KPK’s authority, prompting criticism from civil society groups and former commissioners who argue that the agency’s ability to act quickly and autonomously has been weakened. Rights organizations and governance watchdogs have warned that recent legal and institutional reforms risk undermining KPK’s capacity to investigate high-level graft and protect whistleblowers. In that context, a day featuring three OTTs may be read by the public as a signal that the commission is still willing—and able—to move aggressively against suspected graft.
In the coming days, KPK is expected to announce the legal status of those detained in Bekasi, South Kalimantan, and Banten. If the commission names formal suspects, prosecutors will need to prove that bribes or kickbacks were indeed exchanged in connection with official acts, such as budget allocations, procurement decisions, licensing, or judicial outcomes.
For Indonesia’s broader anti-corruption agenda, the significance of Thursday’s events will depend less on the headline numbers—26 people in three stings—and more on whether the cases lead to transparent trials, convictions where warranted, and structural reforms in the agencies and regional governments involved. For now, the rapid-fire OTTs offer a stark reminder that, despite reform fatigue and political headwinds, Indonesia’s anti-graft body can still land a punch.
You've reached the juicy part of the story.
Sign in with Google to unlock the rest — it takes 2 seconds, and we promise no spoilers in your inbox.
Free forever. No credit card. Just great reading.