Jakarta (ANTARA) - The national anti-money laundering committee will set up a joint task force to investigate suspicious financial transactions at the Finance Ministry that were disclosed last March, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud MD said.

"The National Committee for Money Laundering Prevention and Eradication will soon set up a task force to supervise the follow-up to the financial analysis report or PPATK (Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center) analysis report, with the aggregate value (of the irregular transactions) surpassing Rp349 trillion (US$23.4 billion)," he said at a press conference here on Monday.

The special task force’s supervision will start from the case-building process during which, it will prioritize the largest value financial analysis reports, he informed.

"The committee (through the task force) will commence the case-building by prioritizing the largest-valued analysis report as it aroused public response, and it will start from the report with aggregate value surpassing Rp189 trillion (US$12.6 billion)," the coordinating minister added.

The task force will consist of officials from various parties, namely the PPATK, the Directorate General of Taxes, the Directorate General of Customs and Excise, and the Police's Criminal Investigation Agency, he said.

It will also include officials from the Supreme Court's Special Criminal Agency, the Financial Services Authority's (OJK's) supervision department, the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), and the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs, he added.

The special task force, whose establishment was approved at the national anti-money laundering meeting earlier on Monday, will work professionally, transparently, and accountably, Mahfud affirmed.

Earlier, on March 29, 2023, Mahfud disclosed the findings of suspicious transactions valued at Rp349 trillion at the Finance Ministry during a meeting with legislators from Commission III of the House of Representatives (DPR RI).

The transactions may constitute a money laundering crime and involve 491 officials at the ministry, he added.

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Translator: Tri Meilani A, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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