Indonesia’s ‘perfect husband’ Harvey Moeis faces money laundering, corruption charges
The Indonesian businessman was arrested on Mar 27 as part of an investigation into alleged illicit mining activity potentially resulting in state losses of 271 trillion rupiah, which has cast the spotlight on him and his wife Sandra Dewi and their lavish lifestyle.
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SINGAPORE: Indonesia’s “perfect husband,” as he is known by netizens, has been arrested and charged following accusations of money laundering and misuse of company funds.
Businessman Harvey Moeis, 38, was apprehended by authorities on Mar 27, for his alleged involvement in US$26 billion theft of funds from a state-owned mining operation.
He was charged for corruption on Mar 31 and for money laundering on Apr 4.
Ketut Sumedana, the Head of the Attorney General's Office (AGO) Legal Information Center, said that they had interviewed 173 witnesses in relation to the case, according to the Jakarta Globe.
Harvey's 40-year-old wife, actress, businesswoman, and brand ambassador Sandra Dewi, is one of these witnesses.
She is under scrutiny herself, according to local media, after the anti-corruption agency lodged a complaint with authorities over Harvey’s multiple bank accounts, alleging she may have received funds from questionable sources related to her husband’s business ventures.
If convicted, Harvey faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Ms Sandra could face a prison sentence of up to five years or a fine of 1 billion rupiah (US$61,757) if she is charged and convicted.
The famous couple, known for their lavish lifestyle, have become embroiled in what could be Indonesia's largest corruption case, potentially resulting in state losses of 271 trillion rupiah.
The corruption case was announced by the AGO at the end of March, in which it named 16 suspects from both the private sector and state-owned tin mining company PT Timah.
The AGO alleged that from 2018 to 2019, Harvey, as a representative of tin company PT Refined Bangka Tin (RBT), contacted PT Timah’s then-president director Mochtar Riza Pahlevi Tabrani to accommodate illegal mining activities within PT Timah's mining business licensing area.
After several meetings, Riza agreed to lease tin-smelting processing equipment needed to run the illegal mining. Riza had previously been named a suspect by the AGO. He faces charges of corruption.
Harvey also allegedly ordered smelter owners to set aside some of the profits from their businesses. The profits were then divided between him and several other suspects.
These included Helena Lim, manager of currency exchange company PT Quantum Skyline Exchange (QSE) around the 2018-2019 period.
Helena has also been charged of corruption for allegedly aiding in managing the proceeds of criminal acts in the leasing of tin-smelting processing equipment within PT Timah's mining business licensing area.
According to the AGO, the money was allegedly disguised as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds, channeled to Harvey through PT QSE and facilitated by Helena.
The amount of 271 trillion rupiah of potential state losses was revealed by the investigation's expert witness, Bambang Hero Saharjo, an academic from the Faculty of Forestry and Environment at Bogor's Agricultural Institute (IPB) University.
In his testimony at the AGO in February, he said that the calculation of state losses took into account various shortfalls including unreclaimed tin mining, environmental and economic losses, and recovery costs.
Mr Bambang estimated that the alleged corruption, which occurred from 2015 to 2022, has resulted in more than 157 trillion rupiah of ecological loss, 60 trillion rupiah of environmental economic loss, 5 trillion rupiah of environmental recovery costs and 47 trillion rupiah of outer forest area loss.
"This is due to environmental damage from tin mining that is not following existing regulation," he said on the potential state losses in early April, Indonesian media platform Kompas reported.
The alleged losses include costs for revitalising water management functions, regulating water management, controlling erosion and runoff, soil formation, recycling nutrients, waste decomposition functions, biodiversity, genetic resources, and carbon emissions.
Before the scandal, Harvey, who gained his online reputation as the "perfect husband" due to his wealth and good looks, and Ms Sandra, were well-known for their extravagant lifestyles, marking their love story with a luxurious wedding reception at Tokyo Disneyland, Japan on Nov 8, 2016.
The 50-guest wedding, which took place at the theme park’s Cinderella Castle, cost around 957 million rupiah.
The couple lived in a four-story house in a prosperous area of South Jakarta, with marble floors and an elevator. They also owned a spacious five-room house in Australia, with a basketball court, a swimming pool, and a trampoline in a large dedicated children's play area.
Media reports also said that Harvey bought a Bombardier Challenger 605 private jet, which was worth 270 billion rupiah, as a gift for his young son’s birthday.
Harvey also had a lavish collection of expensive cars, ranging from Rolls Royce, Mini Cooper, to Ferrari.
The cars have now been seized, while his personal bank accounts have been blocked by the AGO.
