Origins of Corruption Case in Road Project in North Sumatra with 8 New Suspects

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has announced eight new suspects in the investigation of alleged corruption linked to a road construction project in North Sumatra (Sumut).

The case originated from a sting operation that led to the arrest of the Head of the Public Works and Public Housing Office in Sumut, Topan Obaja Putra Ginting.

“Following the discovery of sufficient new evidence, on September 30, 2026, the KPK has again named eight individuals as suspects,” stated Acting Director of Investigation at the KPK, Ahmad Taufik Husein, during a press conference at the Red and White Building in Jakarta on Thursday (22/10/2026).

The eight new suspects include Stanley Cicero Haggard Taupattinaja, the Head of the National Road Implementation Center (BBPJN) for North Sumatra, from September 2024 to June 28, 2025; Rahmad Parulian, Head of the Working Unit (Kasatker) for BBPJN Sumut; Faisal, PPK 1.1 for BBPJN Sumut, Region I; Heri Handoko, PPK 1.2 for BBPJN Sumut, Region I;

Further suspects include T Rahmansyah Putra, Head of the PJN Working Unit for Sumut Province, Manaek Manalu, PPK 2.2 for BBPJN Sumut, Region II; Munson Ponter Paulus, PPK 1.4 for Satker in Region I BBPJN Sumut; and Dicky Erlangga, Head of the PJN Working Unit for Sumut Province.

Of these eight suspects, the KPK has detained seven individuals at the KPK detention center.

Meanwhile, Dicky Erlangga has not yet been detained as he failed to respond to the investigator's summons today.

“He did not appear for the hearing today. A subsequent summons will be issued on Monday, October 26, 2026,” he added.

Case Construction

Taufik explained that the designation of these eight new suspects is a follow-up to the findings that emerged during the investigation after the initial arrests.

He stated that the case revolves around the Director of PT DNG Akhirun Efendi Siregar and the Director of PT RN M Rayhan Dulasmi Pilang, the winning bidders for the project, who were allegedly asked to provide fee commitments to certain individuals within the BBPJN of North Sumatra.

“In practice, it is suspected that fee commitments were given from the project providers to various parties within the BBPJN of North Sumatra,” he remarked.

Taufik disclosed that the total fees were divided according to rank.

The breakdown is as follows: the Head of BBPJN North Sumatra received 4 percent; the Head of the PJN Working Unit for North Sumatra also received 4 percent; PPK at BBPJN North Sumatra received 1–1.5 percent; Treasurer at BBPJN North Sumatra received 0.5 percent; and the BBPJN Working Group received 0.5 percent.

“The fees were provided directly to the relevant individuals in the BBPJN, either via transfer or cash,” said Taufik.

Taufik emphasized that if project providers did not pay these fees to the BBPJN, they risked losing future project opportunities within the BBPJN of North Sumatra.