INDOPOSCO.ID – Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) will investigate the discovery of a barrel allegedly used to store proceeds from corruption following a sting operation that led to the arrest of Klaten Regent Hamenang Wajar Ismoyo.
“Investigators will certainly look into the use of the barrel as a container for money received by the regent, including whether it was intended to prevent the money from being detected or for some other reason,” KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo told reporters in Jakarta on Monday (October 19, 2026).
Investigators found Rp934 million inside the barrel, which was stored at the home of the Klaten regent’s younger brother, Hanaku Agni Sadewo. Investigators will examine his role in the case.
“This includes the role of his younger brother, who managed the money and handled its inflows and outflows,” Budi said.
He added that the KPK team immediately seized the barrel during the sting operation. It has become a key piece of evidence in uncovering the case, particularly in tracing the movement and management of the funds.
“The barrel was secured by the team during the sting operation and has become an important piece of evidence in uncovering the case, particularly in tracing the flow and management of the money,” he added.
The KPK apprehended 19 people during the sting operation in Klaten. Nine of them were taken to Jakarta and arrived at the KPK’s Red and White Building in Kuningan, South Jakarta, at around 7 a.m. on Friday (October 16, 2026). The commission also seized approximately Rp1.2 billion in cash as evidence.
The anti-graft agency named three suspects in the sting operation related to alleged bribery and corruption within the Klaten Regency administration. They are Hamenang Wajar Ismoyo, Ahmad Luthfi H. Rahmatullah, head of the Central Java Representative Office of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), and private-sector individual Muhammad Amin Wahyu Utomo.
All three have been formally detained at the KPK detention center in the Red and White Building for an initial 20-day period, from October 16 to November 4, 2026. (dan)
