Former Garuda CEO facing corruption charges
Former Garuda Indonesia CEO Emirsyah Satar has been arrested and is facing money laundering charges relating to his tenure at the national flag carrier.
The arrest is tied to a long running cross border bribery investigation involving engine-maker Rolls-Royce.
Rolls-Royce was convicted of paying off company executives in exchange for contracts at various airlines in Thailand, India, Malaysia and Thailand.
Satar was named a suspect more than two years ago by Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the agency now says it has secured enough evidence for a prosecution.
He has been accused of accepting payments of 1.2 million euros and US$180,000 in cash which are linked to contracts ‘worth billions of dollars.’
Investigators have seized homes in Jakarta and Singapore and freezed bank accounts in Satar’s name.
Satar’s lawyer acknowledged the payments as ‘gifts’ but denied knowingly accepting bribes as the head of a state funded business.
"After the investigation started, he realised that as a state employee he should not have received anything, so he returned the money," lawyer Luhut Pangaribuan told Bloomberg.
In 2017, Rolls-Royce agreed to pay a US$800 million fine over the bribery and corruption claims.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025