Indonesia’s Attorney General’s Office (AGO) has accused two tax officers of accepting bribes from listed pulp producer Toba Pulp Lestari in connection with alleged under-invoicing that prosecutors estimate caused state losses of around 2 trillion rupiah ($111.95 million).
Saiful Bahri Siregar, director of investigations at the AGO’s special crimes unit, told reporters late on Wednesday that the alleged under-invoicing took place between 2008 and 2025. The case centres on exports of pulp products by the company to an affiliate, which prosecutors say were declared using a harmonised system code with a lower value.
According to Siregar, the practice allegedly reduced the amount of corporate tax revenue that the Indonesian state should have received. “The suspects, acting unlawfully, failed to carry out their duties and functions as supervisors… And the suspects have received a certain amount of money from the company,” he said.
The two tax officers, identified only by the initials BP and SR, allegedly served as tax audit supervisors for the company between 2020 and 2024. Prosecutors accuse them of failing to perform their supervisory duties while receiving money from the company.
The alleged conduct involving the company’s exports is understood by prosecutors to have continued over many years. Toba Pulp Lestari, which operates in the pulp processing and forestry industry, allegedly exported pulp products to its affiliate from 2008 while using a harmonised system code carrying a lower value.
Siregar said the initial estimate of losses to the state was 2 trillion rupiah. The figure represents the prosecutors’ assessment of tax revenue that the state allegedly failed to collect as a result of the under-invoicing.
The AGO has not named Toba Pulp Lestari as a suspect in the case. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The investigation focuses on the conduct of the two tax officials and their alleged failure to carry out their responsibilities. Prosecutors allege that payments from the company influenced the officers’ conduct while they were responsible for tax audits.
The allegations also carry potentially severe legal consequences. The suspects are accused of violating an anti-corruption clause in Indonesia’s criminal code that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The case highlights the authorities’ focus on alleged misconduct involving tax supervision and the potential loss of public revenue. Prosecutors are continuing to assess the scale of the alleged losses, with the current estimate standing at 2 trillion rupiah.
The AGO’s allegations remain accusations, and the company has not been named as a suspect in the proceedings. The two tax officers, meanwhile, face allegations that they accepted payments while failing to perform their supervisory duties in relation to the company’s tax affairs.
