Ombudsman Raid at Cibinong Prison: Luxury Facilities and the List of High-Profile Inmates Now Under Scrutiny
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- Ombudsman RI menemukan bangunan dengan fasilitas apartemen di dalam Lapas Cibinong saat sidak pada 23 September.
- Lapas ini menampung sejumlah narapidana kasus besar seperti Ferdy Sambo, Harvey Moeis, dan Rahmat Effendi.
- Ditjenpas membantah temuan tersebut dan menyebut bangunan itu sebagai rumah dinas pejabat lapas.
A surprise inspection conducted by the Ombudsman of the Republic of Indonesia at Cibinong Class IIA Prison, Pondok Rajeg, Bogor Regency, on Wednesday (23/9) uncovered the existence of buildings with luxury facilities allegedly used by inmates. The findings have raised serious questions about the standards of penitentiary management in Indonesia, especially since the prison houses a number of high-profile corruption and murder convicts.
During the raid, the Ombudsman team found a building equipped with a living room, bedroom, dining room, kitchen, television, refrigerator, and various other household appliances. When the team entered the area, occupants believed to be inmates immediately fled into a room. An additional report from the Directorate General of Corrections (Ditjenpas) also mentioned the presence of mini golf facilities, a fitness center, and even an apartment inside the prison.
The Head of the West Java Regional Office of Ditjenpas, Yudi Suseno, denied that the building was intended for inmates. He stated that the location raided was an assimilation area formerly known as the Assimilation and Education Facility (SAE), and that the buildings were official residences with formal decrees. "The houses visited by the Ombudsman Team are official residences that have Residential Decrees," he said on Thursday (24/9), as quoted by detikcom.
Cibinong Prison is indeed known as the detention place of several convicts in major cases. Ferdy Sambo, former Head of the Propam Division of the Indonesian National Police, was transferred to this prison on 29 August 2023 to serve a life sentence for the premeditated murder of Brigadier Nofriansyah Yosua Hutabarat. He was transferred along with two of his subordinates, Kuat Ma'ruf and Ricky Rizal Wibowo, who were sentenced to 10 years and 8 years in prison respectively.
Besides Sambo, there is Harvey Moeis, convicted in the corruption case involving the tin trading system of PT Timah Tbk for the 2015-2022 period. He was executed to Cibinong Prison on 21 July 2025 to serve a 20-year prison sentence. The Head of the Legal Information Center of the Attorney General's Office, Anang Supriatna, stated that the execution was set out in the Minutes of the Implementation of the Court Decision dated 21 July 2025. Then, former Bekasi Mayor Rahmat Effendi, also known as Pepen, has also been serving a 12-year sentence in the same prison since 7 August 2023. In January 2026, Ditjenpas confirmed that Pepen was still an inmate and had not received parole.
"We convey that to date the person concerned remains an inmate at Cibinong Prison, not in parole program status," said the Head of the Cooperation Sub-Directorate of Ditjenpas, Rika Aprianti.
The Ombudsman's findings highlight the issue of prison governance that has long been in the spotlight. Luxury facilities inside prisons not only reflect unequal treatment of inmates but also potentially undermine the principles of justice and accountability. The public is also questioning whether oversight of penitentiary institutions is effective, especially when convicts in major cases gain access to facilities far removed from the standard cell.
Going forward, this case could be a test for the government in improving the correctional system. If it is not followed up transparently, public trust in law enforcement could erode further. Will the Ombudsman recommend a comprehensive audit of all prisons, or will these findings simply evaporate like a number of previous cases?
